Aline F. :nyancat_rainbow:<p>Fire at <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Tesla" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Tesla</span></a> dealership near Rome destroys 17 cars </p><p>At least 17 Tesla cars were destroyed after a fire broke out at a dealership on the outskirts of <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Rome" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Rome</span></a> on Monday morning, according to Italian fire officials. No one was at the dealership when the fire broke out and no injuries have been reported.</p><p>Rome’s fire service said it was investigating “all avenues” while looking into how the fire started, but it did not rule out arson. Local <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/police" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>police</span></a> said officers interviewed the dealership owners and are looking at <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/surveillance" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>surveillance</span></a> footage.</p><p>The fire comes after a string of reports across Italy in recent weeks of Tesla vehicles being vandalized and defaced, with anti-Elon <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Musk" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Musk</span></a> and anti-Donald <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Trump</span></a> sentiments written with spray paint.</p><p>Another car dealership burned down in northern Rome a week ago, destroying 30 cars, including used Teslas. That fire was initially blamed on an electrical fault, but an investigation is underway.</p><p>Also in Rome, several Teslas in the Garbatella neighborhood, where Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni grew up, were defaced, according to police and social media posts. <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Meloni" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Meloni</span></a> and Musk are self-described close friends, but the Italian leader has not commented on the vandalism. Tesla dealerships in <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Milan" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Milan</span></a> have also been targeted by environmental groups in recent weeks.</p><p>:molotov: <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2025/03/31/europe/tesla-cars-fire-rome-intl" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">edition.cnn.com/2025/03/31/eur</span><span class="invisible">ope/tesla-cars-fire-rome-intl</span></a></p>