A Colorado Tesla dealership was vandalized after someone tried to set it on fire early Friday morning and left graffiti that was “offensive and hateful in nature,” Loveland police said.
Officers responded to the dealership near the intersection of U.S. 34 and U.S. 287 around 7 a.m. Friday and found someone had attempted arson and vandalized the building and some vehicles with graffiti, the department said in a news release.
Loveland police declined to release further information about the graffiti or say whether it was directed at a specific person or group, but CBS Colorado reported it included a spray-painted message, “Nazi cars,” on the building, an apparent reference to Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
Musk, the world’s richest man and adviser to President Donald Trump, has been involved in recent political controversies, including giving a straight-arm salute resembling the Nazi Sieg Heil on stage at a rally after Trump’s inauguration.
There were two similar incidents at the Tesla dealership on Jan. 29 and Sunday but of “lesser magnitude,” police officials said. The department is now working with the FBI and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives on the case.
Anyone with information about the incident can contact the Loveland Police Department tip line at 970-962-2032 or Larimer County Crime Stoppers at 970-221-6868.
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