By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER and ERIC TUCKER
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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.
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.”
