Vandals damage Tesla cars in Belfast | UK News

Vandals have damaged around 20 Tesla vehicles at a dealership in Belfast, police have said.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said the incident happened in the Boucher Road area in the south of the city on Sunday.

Most of the cars had their wing mirrors broken, while some had their windows smashed and others sustained bodywork dents.

Police did not mention a suspected motive for the vandalism in their statement – as they urged witnesses to come forward.

The Tesla brand has become a target for demonstrations and vandalism in the US and elsewhere in recent weeks after its chief executive Elon Musk took a key role in Donald Trump’s administration.

The billionaire businessman and owner of X is a friend and supporter of Mr Trump and contributed millions of dollars to his re-election campaign.

Musk, a vocal critic of big government, has been leading efforts to cut federal spending via the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), with plans for mass layoffs of federal workers.

Police in Oregon said “more than a dozen” shots were fired at a Tesla dealership last week – the second time the business had been targeted in a week.

Four Cybertrucks were destroyed by fire in Seattle, but police have not said if it was arson.

Damage to Tesla vehicles has also been reported in Massachusetts, Washington and South Carolina, police told ABC News said.

In a bid to boost sales and support the brand, Mr Trump said he would buy one in front of the White House last week.

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Standing in front of several Teslas, the US president declared the red Model S “beautiful” and urged Americans to buy Tesla in solidarity with Musk, whom he called “a great American”.

It came after Tesla shares plunged by at least 15%, meaning the stock has lost more than half its value since its peak in December, after Mr Trump refused to rule out a recession in the US economy.