Justice Department charges man with arson at New Mexico Tesla dealership
and GOP headquarters
[April 15, 2025]
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department has charged a man
with vandalizing a Tesla dealership in New Mexico and setting fire to
the headquarters of the state Republican Party, according to court
records unsealed Monday.
A criminal complaint charges Jamison R. Wagner, 40, with federal arson
-related crimes in the fire last month and the vandalism in February at
a Tesla dealership in Bernalillo, where authorities found two Tesla
Model Y vehicles ablaze as well as swastika symbols on windshields and
spray-painted graffiti messages including “Die Elon" and “Die Tesla
Nazi.”
Elon Musk is the billionaire CEO of Tesla and a close ally of President
Donald Trump who has helped engineer a massive downsizing of the federal
government and purge of employees.
The arrest is part of a federal crackdown on what Attorney General Pam
Bondi has described as a wave of domestic terrorism against property
carrying the logo of Musk’s electric-car company. Bondi previewed the
arrest Thursday during a Cabinet meeting to highlight federal law
enforcements' efforts to go after vandals in recent weeks who have been
targeting Tesla.
Wagner is also charged in connection with a fire last month at the
Albuquerque headquarters of the New Mexico Republican Party. The fire
badly burned the entrance and caused extensive smoke damage throughout
the office, authorities said. Republican representatives also found
spray paint on the side of the building about 50 feet (15 meters) from
the entrance, saying “ICE=KKK,” according to New Mexico Republican Party
Chair Amy Barela.
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In a statement Monday, Barela thanked federal investigators for the
arrest and called the fire "an attack on the democratic process and
the values we hold dear. We are relieved that no one was harmed and
are committed to ensuring that justice is served.”
During a search of Wagner’s home and garage on Saturday,
investigators found eight assembled suspected incendiary devices,
black and red spray paint and a cardboard stencil with the phrase
“ICE=KKK” that had red spray paint on it, according to court papers.
Wagner was ordered to remain detained pending a detention hearing.
An attorney for him did not immediately respond to a request for
comment.
The Justice Department has charged four other cases against people
accused of using Molotov cocktails to destroy Tesla cars and fire
stations. The FBI last month created a task force to coordinate
investigate efforts around the attacks with officials at the Bureau
of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Bondi has suggested prosecutors will make no plea deals with those
charged in the Tesla attacks, telling the president at the White
House on Thursday that “there will be no negotiations, at your
directive.”
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