Man vandalized Teslas with Elon Musk stickers, said it was free speech, MA cops say

A Massachusetts man is facing charges after police said he defaced “numerous” Tesla vehicles in the Greater Boston area with stickers.

The stickers depict an image of Tesla CEO Elon Musk making a straight-arm gesture during his Jan. 21 speech at President Donald Trump’s inauguration rally. The movement brought widespread scrutiny, with some interpreting it as a Nazi salute.

One Tesla owner recorded a video March 2 of the 39-year-old Roslindale man putting a sticker on his car and confronted him, according to a Facebook post from the Brookline Police Department.

“Why do you think you have the right to do that?” the person recording asked.

“It’s my free speech,” the man replied. “You guys can get a better car,” he continued after the owners said he “ruined” their vehicle, according to the video.

“You can say whatever you want, you can post whatever you want on social media,” Brookline police Deputy Paul Campbell told WBZ. “You can’t go around damaging other people’s property.”

The man was arrested March 5 and charged with six counts of defacing property, police said. He is due back in court May 7, authorities said.

Brookline is a 6-mile drive southwest from Boston.

This story was originally published March 6, 2025 at 1:02 PM with the headline "Man vandalized Teslas with Elon Musk stickers, said it was free speech, MA cops say."

Lauren Liebhaber

mcclatchy-newsroom

Lauren Liebhaber covers international science news with a focus on taxonomy and archaeology at McClatchy. She holds a bachelor’s degree from St. Lawrence University and a master’s degree from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University. Previously, she worked as a data journalist at Stacker.