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Owen McIntire, 19, of Kansas City, Missouri, who attends college in Boston, was arrested and appeared in federal court in Massachusetts on Friday, April 18.
Prosecutors say the charges stem from a Monday, March 17 blaze at the Tesla Center in Kansas City, where he’s accused of using incendiary devices, including one that didn’t detonate, to start a fire that destroyed two vehicles worth more than $100,000 each and damaged two charging stations.
An officer with the Kansas City Police Department was in the area around 11:15 p.m. when he saw smoke coming from a grey Cybertruck in the dealership lot.
Nearby, police say, was an intact Molotov cocktail—an improvised firebomb made from a glass bottle and flammable liquid. The flames from the first vehicle spread to a second Cybertruck.
The Kansas City Fire Department responded and extinguished the blaze. The criminal complaint states that each Cybertruck had a listed sale price of more than $105,000, and that two nearby charging stations, each valued at $550, were also damaged in the fire.
According to federal investigators, McIntire faces two felony counts: unlawful possession of an unregistered destructive device and malicious damage by fire to property used in interstate commerce.
Officials say the arrest marks the second this week involving alleged attacks on Tesla property.
“This wasn’t vandalism — it was a violent criminal act," Acting ATF Director Dan Driscoll. "Thanks to the relentless work of ATF special agents, and our close coordination with the FBI and local law enforcement, we now have a suspect in custody.
"I am committed to ensuring ATF continues to stand on the front lines of public safety. ATF will not tolerate those who incite political violence in our communities.”
The DOJ did not release the name of the college McIntire attends.
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