A disturbing road rage incident in Flagstaff, Arizona, has left a female Tesla driver shaken after she was allegedly attacked by another motorist.
Arizona Tesla driver ambushed on the road
The 61-year-old victim, who requested anonymity and used the alias “Susan,” recounted the harrowing experience to KTVK-TV.
According to Susan, she was traveling along Route 66 when a male driver in another vehicle began pursuing tailing her aggressively out of nowhere.
Footage from her Tesla’s cameras captured the suspect in a green car maneuvering to cut her off before forcing her to a stop.
Once both vehicles were stopped, the man hopped out of his car and went after Susan as she remained in her Tesla. Without warning, he began physically assaulting her.
“I started to say, ‘You cut me off, what’s your problem,’ but I didn’t know how much he heard me,” she recalled to KTVK. “He got out and started to punch me with a closed fist.”
Tesla driver took a bite out of her attacker
Desperate to defend herself, Susan bit the attacker’s hand, a move captured on video as the assailant recoiled and shook his hand in pain.
Soon after, someone else got out of the green car and intervened, pulling the attacker away before the two men drove off.
“I’m just appalled,” Susan told KTVK. “I didn’t buy my car for a political statement. I bought my car because it’s really fun to drive. My politics have nothing to do with that. I’m ashamed of our society and what they are doing.”
Authorities identified the suspect as 33-year-old Flagstaff resident Robert Artherton. He was cited for disorderly conduct, assault, and aggressive driving but was not detained, as he required medical attention for his injured hand.
Police confirmed that both parties suffered minor injuries and noted that conflicting accounts were given regarding what led to the incident.
Woman vandalizes parked Tesla
Meanwhile, in Florida, a woman has been taken into police custody for allegedly vandalizing a Tesla with a large wad of gum, causing over $2,600 in damages.
The car owner reported the act of vandalism, which was caught on his Tesla’s built-in cameras, at a parking garage outside a JCPenney store at a local mall.
Video footage reportedly shows a suspect smearing gum onto the vehicle’s door handle before spitting on it. The suspect was then seen entering a white Honda Pilot and driving away.
Following an investigation, authorities arrested 45-year-old Yamaris Marrero of Hallandale Beach. She was initially charged with criminal mischief with a hate crime enhancement. However, that charge was later downgraded from a second-degree felony to a third-degree felony.
Mall security officers spotted Marrero in the food court last week, leading to her arrest. She is currently being held on a $2,500 bond at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
Cybertruck Targeted in California
Over in California, a shocking act of vandalism targeted a parked Tesla Cybertruck in what appeared to be a deliberate and premeditated attack.
Surveillance footage captured a suspect dressed entirely in black scoping out the vehicle in a residential driveway around 4:20 a.m. on Saturday. An hour later, the suspect returned, armed with a concrete rock and duct tape.
The footage revealed the suspect covering one of the Cybertruck’s cameras with tape before proceeding to smash its windshield repeatedly and slash all four tires. The vandal even left a handwritten note informing the owner of the damage done.
Cybertruck owner Jason Bedell described the attack as unsettling, particularly given his quiet neighborhood.
“I live at the top of a hill, at the end of a cul-de-sac. We don’t get much traffic at all,” he told KTVU. “So for somebody to come up here and do something like that is really unusual and very shocking.”
Bedell called for accountability, saying, “To come to my house and plan an attack like that, that person’s dangerous and needs to face consequences for what they’ve done.”
Trump supporter run down at protest
A separate confrontation unfolded in Idaho when a 70-year-old man allegedly used his vehicle to strike a counterprotester at a Tesla dealership in Meridian.
Police say the incident occurred around 1 p.m. on Saturday and involved Christopher Talbot and a 49-year-old man.
According to KIVI-TV, the victim had just parked his truck, which was sporting Trump flags, when Talbot made an obscene gesture before allegedly hitting him with his vehicle.
The victim was able to transport himself to a nearby hospital, where he was treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
Police, acting on the victim’s description of the suspect’s license plate, later arrested Talbot at his residence.
Talbot was charged with aggravated battery and booked into the Ada County Jail. He was denied bail.
