Elon Musk has some words for Tesla vandals.

Asked about the widespread incidents against Tesla dealerships and vehicles during a “Hannity” on Fox News appearance on Tuesday, Musk denounced them and said the vandalism had reached levels he’d never seen.

He also attributed the incidents to those on the political left.

“It’s really come as quite a shock to me that there is this level of, really, hatred and violence from the left,” Musk said.

Protests have spread across the US since Musk began his work with the White House DOGE office in January. Across the pond, the slogan “Don’t buy a Tesla” has been used as a rallying cry of sorts in places such as Berlin and Wales.

The grassroots “Tesla Takedown” protest movement, which started on Bluesky, a competitor to Musk’s X platform, has called for Tesla owners to sell their vehicles and stock in an effort to “stop Musk now.” A website for the effort has listed dozens of public demonstrations at Tesla showrooms in recent weeks.

“I always thought that the left, you know, Democrats, were supposed to be the party of empathy, the party of caring, and yet they’re burning down cars, they’re firebombing dealerships, they’re firing bullets into dealerships, they’re smashing up Teslas,” Musk said.

“Tesla is a peaceful company,” he said. “We’ve never done anything harmful.”

Musk also suggested, without evidence, that the protests and vandalism incidents might be part of a broader conspiracy against him.

“I mean, I don’t know, who’s funding it and who’s coordinating it? Because this is crazy. I’ve never seen anything like this,” Musk said.

Since January, DOGE has worked to reduce government costs and what it describes as fraudulent spending and corruption. The effort has sent representatives to multiple federal government agencies and examined federal programs such as the Social Security Administration.

Though he didn’t mention a government department by name, Musk accused some people of receiving money “fraudulently” and suggested a possible connection to the protests against him and Tesla.

“And they basically want to kill me because I’m stopping their fraud, and they want to hurt Tesla because we’re stopping the terrible waste and corruption in the government,” he told host Sean Hannity.

“I’ve never done anything harmful,” he said.

Both President Donald Trump and the Justice Department have recently weighed in on the vandalism against Tesla, which the police say has included Tesla charging stations set on fire, gunfire damage at dealerships, and damage to Tesla vehicles.

Investigators from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and a member of the Seattle Fire Department examining burned Tesla Cybertrucks at a Tesla lot in Seattle in March.AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson

When asked earlier this month whether he was considering labeling violent attacks against Tesla dealerships as “domestic terrorism,” Trump indicated he would.

“They’re bad guys. They’re the same guys who screw around with our schools and universities,” Trump said. “We’re going to catch you, and you’re going to go through hell.”

The Justice Department said Tuesday that it was pursuing those suspected of carrying out the ongoing vandalism, calling it “nothing short of domestic terrorism.”

Musk didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

The police are investigating attacks in their areas in partnership with federal agencies, and arrests have been made in some cases.

In February, a Colorado woman was arrested on suspicion of being involved in a vandalism incident and charged with criminal intent to commit a felony, criminal mischief, and using explosives or incendiary devices during a felony, police records say.

Some Tesla owners have meanwhile told BI they have decided to sell their vehicles amid the protests or have affixed bumper stickers saying “I Bought This Before We Knew Elon Was Crazy.”

Owners of the Cybertruck, the vehicle most closely associated with Musk, also told BI they’d experienced an uptick in road rage and vandalism directed at them in recent months.

Read the original article on Business Insider