KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) – The FBI and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are investigating Tesla vehicles fires at a Kansas City dealership.
Late Monday night, the Kansas City Fire Department responded to Kansas City’s Tesla dealership after two Cybertrucks caught fire.
Firefighters were dispatched to the dealership, located at 10111 Stateline Road, around 11:13 p.m. on March 17.
The Kansas City Police Department confirmed that one of its officers was nearby when he saw smoke coming from a Cybertruck. He tried to use a handheld extinguisher to put the fire out but could not and called KCFD.
The Kansas City Fire Department responded to Kansas City’s Tesla dealership after two Cybertrucks caught fire.(Morgan Riddell, KCTV5)
Reports indicate just one Cybertruck was initially on fire, but it spread to a second one parked next to it. Firefighters quickly extinguished the flames and put fire blankets on the electric vehicles to keep them from reigniting.
KCPD and the bomb and arson team are investigating this as a possible arson.
The FBI and ATF are working with the Kansas City, MO Police Department to investigate an overnight incident in which Cybertrucks at a Tesla Dealership in south Kansas City were damaged. Similar incidents have occurred in several states and the FBI and ATF are coordinating with federal, state, and local law enforcement partners to gather information. We would like to remind members of the public that if they observe anything suspicious or have information about potential threats to report it to local law enforcement immediately, call their local FBI or ATF field office, or contact our tiplines at 1-800-call-FBI or 1-888-ATF-TIPS
As the Kansas City, MO Police Department released early this morning, the fire involved in the incident is suspicious in nature, thus the involvement of the Police Department’s Bomb and Arson Unit, FBI Special Agents, and Special Agent /Fire Investigators from the ATF.
It is too early in the investigation to comment further at this time.United States Department of Justice Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
Federal agents spent much of Tuesday in a neighborhood across the street from the dealership.
KCTV5 obtained a video from a passerby that showed the Cybertrucks in flames. Then, the video shows a person running from the dealership into the neighborhood across the street.
ATF agents went house to house looking for evidence and asking residents for their security camera footage.
One woman, who wished to remain anonymous, told KCTV5 that she was a bit startled when the agents knocked on her door.
“They asked us if we had seen anything out of the ordinary last night,” she said.
She has two kids of her own and said she was asleep and woke up to the news.
“It’s definitely unnerving that it happened so close to our home and our street, an area where there are a lot of kids,” she said.
As top authorities continue to investigate what exactly happened, the entire situation has those in the area on edge, especially as people around the country and locally are making their voices heard through protests outside the dealership.
“My husband and I were talking the other day that the protests, being right there, was not something we ever anticipated,” she said.
President Trump has made it clear that he will label violence and destruction towards Tesla or any other company as “domestic terrorism.”
As of Tuesday afternoon, the AFT has not linked this to any other threat or act of vandalism, simply saying they’re investigating.
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