Irvine Police Hunt Suspect Who Spray-Painted 13 Teslas With Slurs

Q: How did a simple restaurant takeout bag lead police directly to the suspect behind the massive Tesla vandalism spree?

Police identified the Tesla vandalism suspect by linking him to an earlier anti-Tesla incident and tracing the restaurant takeout bag he was carrying. According to Irvine police, an officer remembered a prior case in which a man allegedly spat at a Tesla stopped at an intersection while holding a takeout bag. Investigators then compared surveillance from that earlier encounter with video from the garage vandalism spree and believed the same man appeared in both. The takeout bag became the key lead. Detectives tracked the bag to the restaurant where the order had been placed and obtained the customer’s name from that order, police said. That led them to identify 25-year-old Irvine resident Max Sebastian Solomon as the suspect. Police then arrested Solomon and booked him into the Orange County Jail on suspicion of felony vandalism. Investigators had already developed similarities from the garage footage, including the suspect’s appearance, shoes and a possible tattoo behind his right elbow, but the restaurant bag gave them the direct identification they needed.

3 articles · Updated · Los Angeles Times · Jul 28

13 Teslas were vandalized in Irvine parking garages over two incidents, and police are asking the public to help identify a suspect still at large.
July 17 and July 23 attacks hit garages near Michelson Drive and Carlson Avenue, with at least four cars damaged in the first round and nine in the second.
Surveillance footage and Tesla camera video captured a man with light brown hair in gray pants and a black jacket, at times covering his mouth with a black shirt while spray-painting vehicles.
Photos of the damage showed the words “Nazi” and “Fascist” painted on the cars, and Irvine police released a 33-second video as part of the search.