German prosecution service is on the Tesla sabotage case

The public prosecutor of Frankfurt Oder is now formally investigating the arson attack that cut the power supply to Tesla’s plant in Germany, Giga Berlin, this week.

The prosecution lists sabotage, which is a break of constitutional law, the disruption of public services and arson in its charges against persons unknow.

As reported, an electricity pylon located around ten kilometres from the Tesla site was set alight early on Tuesday morning, causing a power outage at the Gigafactory in Grünheide and in six surrounding communities. Production has been at a standstill ever since, and Tesla had to send employees home.

Just hours after the attack, an extremist network calling itself “Vulkangruppe” (German for “volcano group”) claimed responsibility for the arson attack in a letter which has since been deemed authentic by the police. See our reporting for further details. 

While the power supply in the communities was restored after just a few hours, this is different for the 12,000-employee factory. As things stand, the production lines will be shut down until the end of next week.

A spokeswoman for the public prosecutor’s office in Frankfurt told the DPA news agency that investigations are commencing against persons unknown. Moreover, the Federal Public Prosecutor General has been informed about the proceedings. “He will decide whether he will take over the investigation.”

Meanwhile, the police are looking for witnesses who may have seen something on Tuesday night, which could lead to the perpetrators or add other relevant information about the attack.

spiegel.de (in German)