President Donald Trump’s handpicked district attorney announced Thursday that police busted a “domestic terrorism” suspect in the nation’s capital, but said he was letting the suspect walk free without bail.
That’s because the suspect in question is not actually accused of a violent offense, but instead was busted for allegedly defacing four Teslas in Washington, D.C. last month.
“The so-called ‘Tesla Takedown’ is domestic terrorism, and my team is taking it on front and center,” U.S. Attorney Ed Martin said in a statement Thursday. “These attacks are not just an attack on someone’s property. They are meant to intimidate and suppress political speech and shut down the marketplace of ideas.”
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D.C. resident Justin Fisher, 49, is the suspect in question. Martin alleges he “defaced private property on Tesla vehicles” in the district’s northeast corner between March 1 and March 21 during daylight hours, but did not release any additional details.
Fisher was arrested on April 1, but had his first court appearance on Thursday.
Martin, who defended Capitol rioters before being nominated as D.C.’s top prosecutor in February by Trump, said Fisher faces four counts of defacing public or private property. He was released on personal recognizance and is not due back in court until June 10 for a “misdemeanor initial status hearing.”
Tesla outrage has cooled from its peak in March. That is when the electric vehicle manufacturer’s CEO, Elon Musk, was still dedicating his full attention to running the Department of Government Efficiency and cutting tens of thousands of federal jobs.
Musk, 53, remains a divisive figure but has been much quieter in April. He has clashed with Trump Cabinet officials—both publicly and in private meetings—and ushered in one of Tesla’s worst quarters in the company’s 22-year history. He now appears to be taking a giant step back from being a constant White House presence, telling investors on a Tesla earnings call that he would limit himself to a day or two a week of government work.
Enraged Democrats and disgruntled federal workers took to Tesla dealerships last month to protest the Trump administration and Musk’s affiliation with it.
Some are accused of elevating those protests into property crimes by vandalizing or, in some cases, outright destroying Tesla vehicles.
“This level of violence is insane and deeply wrong,” Musk wrote last Month on X, sharing a video of burning Teslas in Las Vegas. “Tesla just makes electric cars and has done nothing to deserve these evil attacks.”
Trump has also addressed the attacks, as has Attorney General Pam Bondi. The latter promised to prosecute offenders to the fullest extent under the law.
“If you target Tesla and break the law, then you can expect consequences,” said Bondi in a Thursday statement. “This Department of Justice will not tolerate such criminal acts.”
