A 61-year-old Tesla driver told KTVK-TV a male motorist recently cut her off, boxed her in, then exited his car and repeatedly punched her on a busy road in Flagstaff, Arizona.
The woman, who wants to remain anonymous and went by the alias “Susan,” explained to the station that she was on Route 66 when another vehicle started chasing her.
‘I didn’t buy my car for a political statement. I bought my car because its really fun to drive. My politics have nothing to do with that. I’m ashamed of our society and what they are doing.’
KTVK said Susan has video of the incident, and it shows a motorist in a green car pulling up next to her and then swerving in front of her and boxing her in.
Susan told the station that the motorist then exited his car, walked over to her as she was behind the wheel of her Tesla, and then began punching her.
“I started to say, ‘You cut me off, what’s your problem,’ but I didn’t know how much he heard me,” Susan recounted to KTVK. “He got out and started to punch me with a closed fist.”
Susan told the station she soon bit her attacker’s hand; indeed, video shows the male at one point pulling his hand away from the Tesla and shaking it. Moments later, video shows the male motorist’s passenger exiting the green car and pulling the attacker away, after which the pair drive off.
“I’m just appalled,” Susan told KTVK. “I didn’t buy my car for a political statement. I bought my car because its really fun to drive. My politics have nothing to do with that. I’m ashamed of our society and what they are doing.”
Flagstaff police cited the suspect, who was due in court Monday, the station said.
What did police do?
The statement from police said officers responded to reports of “a road rage incident that escalated into a violent encounter” around 12:30 p.m. March 19, KSAZ-TV reported, adding that investigators said the incident involved a Tesla and a Chevrolet Cavalier.
“The driver of the Cavalier, later identified as Robert Artherton, 33, of Flagstaff, drove in front of the Tesla, causing both vehicles to stop in the roadway,” the statement said in part, KSAZ reported, adding that Artherton exited his vehicle and approached the driver’s side of the Tesla, after which a confrontation ensued.
KSAZ said both parties gave conflicting accounts regarding what took place, and police said they both suffered minor injuries.
“All parties involved allege that the incident was triggered by driving behaviors, honking, and disorderly hand gestures,” officials said in the statement, KSAZ noted.
“Mr. Artherton was arrested via a criminal citation for disorderly conduct, assault, and aggressive driving in lieu of detention due to seeking medical attention for an injury to his hand,” the statement said in part, according to KSAZ.
A second victim
KTVK reported that another female Tesla owner said she recently departed a Flagstaff grocery store and found a note on her car that read, “She’s a Nazi and a loser.”
A few weeks later, she received a threatening text calling her a “Racist POS,” the station said.
“It’s wrong, and it’s deplorable,” the victim told KTVK. “I think they are just hating people and not really hurting a company or Tesla.”
KTVK said both Tesla owners also signed up for a gun safety course at Timberline Firearms, which is north of Flagstaff.
“They were targeted because they drove a Tesla, and as a result felt quite vulnerable,” shop owner Rob Wilson told KTVK. “They were surprised someone would do something like that and realized if they were doing it, and targeting them because of car they drive, they needed to take additional measures to protect themselves.”
You can view a video report here about what happened to both Tesla drivers.
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Crime, Tesla, Tesla driver attacked, Physical attack, Elon musk, Donald trump, Arizona, Flagstaff, Self-defense, Female tesla drivers, Arrest, Politics
