Irvine Police Arrest 25-Year-Old for Vandalizing 13 Teslas in 1 Week

Q: How did a simple restaurant takeout bag lead police to capture a serial Tesla vandal in Irvine?

Police identified the suspect by linking a takeout bag from an earlier, seemingly minor Tesla-related incident to the later spray-paint attacks. According to Irvine police, an officer remembered a previous report in which a man allegedly spat on a Tesla stopped at an intersection while carrying a restaurant takeout bag. As detectives reviewed the vandalism case, they suspected that earlier confrontation might involve the same person. They compared surveillance images from the spitting incident with video from the parking-garage vandalism and saw matching features, including clothing and physical characteristics. That gave investigators a practical lead: the bag. Police traced it back to the restaurant, followed the takeout order, and obtained the customer’s name. Authorities said that information led them to 25-year-old Irvine resident Max Sebastian Solomon. Police then arrested Solomon at his apartment, which authorities said was across the street from where the vandalism occurred. He is accused of damaging 13 Teslas in two incidents near Michelson Drive and Carlson Avenue, including spray-painting words such as “Nazi” and “Fascist” on the vehicles. He now faces felony vandalism charges. In short, the takeout bag mattered because it connected an earlier road-rage-style complaint to a specific restaurant order, which gave police an identity they could tie to the surveillance footage and the string of Tesla vandalism cases.

3 articles · Updated · NBC Los Angeles · Jul 30

Tuesday's arrest of Max Sebastian Solomon came after Irvine police tied him to 13 Teslas spray-painted with red, often offensive messages near Michelson Drive and Carlson Avenue.
A prior incident in which a man spit on a stopped Tesla helped identify him: detectives traced the takeout order he was carrying, then arrested him at an apartment across the street from the vandalism sites.
Police had released surveillance videos on July 20 and again last Friday, first linking the suspect to four damaged vehicles and then to nine more, bringing the total to 13.
Solomon, 25, was booked into the Orange County Jail on felony vandalism charges as investigators continued examining a motive, though police said the attacks appeared to target Teslas specifically.