(Julianna Frieman, Headline USA) Tesla founder Elon Musk said an alleged terrorist “picked the wrong vehicle” Wednesday when his company’s Cybertruck was blown up outside a Trump Hotel in Las Vegas.
Matthew Livelsberger, 37, reportedly died and injured seven people around 8:40 a.m. Wednesday after he set off an explosion from a rented Cybertruck in front of President-elect Donald Trump’s namesake building, according to KTNV. Video shows the vehicle, made by Trump ally Musk’s electric vehicle company, burst into flames as it was detonated by the suspect, who is reportedly being investigated as a potential terrorist.
🚨UPDATE: The Tesla Cybertruck explosion outside of Trump Tower (Trump International Hotel) in Las Vegas on New Year's Day is now being investigated as a possible act of terrorist attack! #Terroristattack
Thanks Joe Biden! No one is safe under Joe Biden and Kamala Harris! pic.twitter.com/SB9FbMrFsU
— AJ Huber (@Huberton) January 1, 2025
Musk took to social media and touted the strength and safety of Tesla’s Cybertruck following the incident, noting that the Trump Hotel’s lobby did not even suffer shattered glass.
“The evil knuckleheads picked the wrong vehicle for a terrorist attack. Cybertruck actually contained the explosion and directed the blast upwards,” Musk wrote on his X social media platform. “Not even the glass doors of the lobby were broken.”
The evil knuckleheads picked the wrong vehicle for a terrorist attack. Cybertruck actually contained the explosion and directed the blast upwards.
Not even the glass doors of the lobby were broken. https://t.co/9vj1JdcRZV
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 2, 2025
The Tesla boss reposted footage of the Cybertruck after the explosion, which showed the dilapidated bed of the vehicle. Fireworks and camping fuel were reported found inside the Cybertruck, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police and Clark County Fire Department officials said during a press conference.
NEW FOOTAGE: “The fact that this was a Cybertruck really limited the damage that occurred inside of the valet, because it had most of the blast go up, through the truck and out… The glass doors at the Trump hotel were not even broken.” pic.twitter.com/XtztqmZAYr
— America (@america) January 2, 2025
The Las Vegas Sheriff just said that the Cybertruck actually held it’s frame and limited the damage of the explosion, directing the blast upwards.
He tried to send a message by using a Tesla, but it ended up saving lives instead.
— Geiger Capital (@Geiger_Capital) January 2, 2025
“The Las Vegas Sheriff just said that the Cybertruck actually held it’s frame and limited the damage of the explosion, directing the blast upwards,” @Geiger_Capital wrote in a post reshared by Musk. “He tried to send a message by using a Tesla, but it ended up saving lives instead.”
🚨 LAS VEGAS POLICE THANK ELON:
“I have to thank Elon Musk specifically. He gave us quite a bit of additional information in regards to how the vehicle was locked after it exploded.. as well as being able to capture all the video from the Tesla charging stations across the… pic.twitter.com/Xdjrp3kRfN
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) January 2, 2025
Las Vegas police gave special thanks to Musk for his assistance in the investigation during a televised press conference Wednesday night.
“I have to thank Elon Musk specifically. He gave us quite a bit of additional information in regards to how the vehicle was locked after it exploded,” the sheriff said.
Musk later took aim at the Associated Press for running the following headline: “1 person dies when Tesla truck catches fire and explodes outside Trump’s Las Vegas hotel.”
AP stands for Associated Propaganda pic.twitter.com/kh8rTuwlPK
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 2, 2025
“Associated Press stands for Associated Propaganda,” Musk said with a screenshot of the outlet’s article on X, which received a community note calling out its “factually incorrect framing” implying the Cybertruck, not the suspect’s fireworks or gasoline, caused the explosion.
Julianna Frieman is a freelance writer published by the Daily Caller, Headline USA, The Federalist, and the American Spectator. Follow her on Twitter at @JuliannaFrieman.
