Law enforcement said the man drove his car into protesters outside a Tesla dealer in Palm Beach County, Florida, but did not hurt those gathered over the weekend to demonstrate against billionaires Elon Musk and President Donald Trump.
It happened on Saturday at a dealership at 5544 Okeechobee Boulevard in West Palm Beach.
The protest was suspended when Andrew Dutil, 44, drove the vehicle to a sidewalk full of protesters at a slow speed, forcing people to stay out of the way, according to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office.
The arrest affidavit tells authorities that the two women were peacefully protesting “to a large number of individuals” as black Nissan drove the curb towards them. They said they were afraid of their lives and believed that if the car got out of the way, the car would have driven them. One woman said Deutil had been driving earlier and shouted at protesters.
Additionally, videos from witnesses allegedly show the suspect “driving on the curb in front of the dealership and attacking almost multiple people.” He then stops and walks towards the dealer. Details of the affidavit.
The sheriff’s office said Tesla employees told them that Deutil had come in and he stood with Tesla before leaving.
No injuries have been reported.
Authorities said when they arrived, Dutil was still parked in front of the dealership and surrounded by multiple people. They arrested him “satisfied.”
According to court records, Dutil faces charges of assault. No lawyers who could speak on Dutil’s behalf were immediately noted in court records.
Tesla showrooms, vehicle lots, charging stations and privately owned cars have been targeted nationwide as they have played a prominent role in the White House.
The planned protest was a company linked to Musk’s company Tesla, one of the slus across the US, responding to billionaires cutting federal funds and cutting labor.
The attacks on real estate carrying the Elon Musk electric car company logo have originated in the US and abroad. Some more violent incidents include a flammable Cybertock in Seattle and shots fired at a Tesla dealer in Oregon.
Palm Beach County also houses Trump’s María Lago Resort, which the president calls the “center of the universe” of social media. Through government efficiency, Trump and Musk began to demolish government agencies and programs and fire staff in the name of culling government waste, fraud and abuse.
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