A Texas woman says she now lives in constant fear after a think consciously rammed her Tesla in an unjustified hit-and-run strike, causing thousands of dollars in damage.
Virita Carstaffin was dining at a Chinese restaurant in Texarkana last week when 33-year-old Demarqeyun Marquize Cox allegedly spotted her dark Tesla in the parking lot and intentionally crashed a four-wheeler into it. Surveillance footage captured Cox slamming head-on into the front driver-side entrance before fleeing the scene.
” I was stunned. I was upset”, Carstaffin said Sunday on Fox &, Friends Weekend. ” He did very a bit]of damage]. I estimate it so far to be between$ 2, 700 and$ 3, 500″.
The strike comes amid a growing wave of theft targeting Teslas, with reviews of cars being set on fire and yet defaced with fascistic images. While the motivation behind Cox’s behavior remains vague, Carstaffin believes Tesla users are becoming cruel goals due to political and social conflicts surrounding the bank’s CEO, Elon Musk.
” It’s very terrible to know that you’re either buying or having, as I was, and you come out to see that your car has been terrorized”, she said. ” The innocent spectators that own these cars don’t get hurt by another person’s emotions with elections”.
Texarkana authorities arrested Cox after soldiers recognised him from security footage and linked him to another Tesla-related theft in the area, according to the New York Post.
Carstaffin says the suffering has left her feeling anxious about merely driving her vehicle.
” I fear every moment, every second”, she said, worried that another attack could occur while she’s inside the car.
” This is my dream car, so it’s like one of my kids. I love my car just like I love my children. And when it was harmed, it actually touched me…. I worked really hard for this, and for somebody to accomplish what they did is quite hurtful”.
Officials have not yet disclosed a possible cause for the assault, but the event has raised fears about the increasing hostility toward Tesla users across the country.
