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(WASHINGTON) — Attacks on Tesla dealerships, cars and equipment are “rudimentary” and require little planning, according to an FBI and Department of Homeland Security assessment, which says lone offenders are the ones carrying out the attacks.

“These criminal actions appear to have been conducted by lone offenders, and all known incidents occurred at night, making identification and arrest of the actors difficult,” the assessment says.

It comes as incendiary devices were found at a Tesla showroom in Austin, Texas, on Monday.

“While they may perceive these attacks as victimless property crimes, these tactics can cause accidental or intentional bodily harm,” the assessment dated March 21 and obtained by ABC News says. “Some individuals with political or social goals are likely to view the publicity surrounding these past incidents as validation that these tactics are successful in drawing public attention, and they may be galvanized to engage in similar violence.”

The bulletin also says that collaboration between state and local law enforcements can help track down the ones responsible.

“As of late March, the FBI and its law enforcement partners continue to investigate these incidents, and DHS and FBI are working with federal, state, and local law enforcement partners to disrupt and deter future incidents,” the assessment says. “In the next twelve months, incidents targeting Tesla EVs and dealerships potentially pose an increased risk of injuries to civilians and first responders.”

On Monday, the FBI announced a task force to investigate the attacks on Tesla dealerships, cars and equipment.

The FBI’s task force encompasses agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and FBI counterterrorism agents.

“The FBI has been investigating the increase in violent activity toward Tesla, and over the last few days, we have taken additional steps to crack down and coordinate our response,” FBI Director Kash Patel posted on X. “This is domestic terrorism. Those responsible will be pursued, caught, and brought to justice.”

President Donald Trump has called those carrying out the attacks “terrorists” and suggested those found guilty of participating in Tesla-related crimes could be sent to prison in El Salvador, referring to the administration’s controversial move to deport alleged gang members to the country.

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(NEW YORK) — The chances of an asteroid striking Earth within the next decade has doubled in a matter of weeks, according to NASA astronomers.

The asteroid, discovered just after Christmas and named 2024 YR4, could strike the planet in December 2032 as it approaches during another journey around its orbit, according to NASA’s Center for Near Earth Object Studies.

When the detection of the asteroid was announced last month, NASA predicted just a 1.3% probability of it hitting Earth. The likelihood has increased to 2.1%.

The overall probability may be low, but a 2% chance of an asteroid strike is “uncommon,” Davide Farnocchia, navigation engineer with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, told ABC News.

“Getting something with a probability this high, like 2%, which is high for us,” he said.

On the Torino scale — the method for categorizing the impact hazard associated with near-Earth objects — 2024 YR4 is ranking at three out of 10, Farnocchia said, adding that most space objects rank at a zero.

The object was discovered in late December as it made a close approach towards Earth, but it is now moving away, Farnocchia said.

The elongated shape of the orbit takes the asteroid around the sun and into Earth’s vicinity before it ventures far out between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.

Because of the unusual orbit, the asteroid will disappear starting in April until 2028, according to NASA.

The uncertainty surrounding this space rock is still prominent as astronomers race to find out as much as they can about the asteroid before they lose sight of it.

“We don’t want to take any chances,” he said.

The asteroid measures between 130 feet and 330 feet in diameter and large enough to potentially cause localized damage were it to strike a populated city, according to NASA.

In 1908, the Tunguska asteroid, which was a similar size, flattened trees over an area of about 1,250 miles after it exploded in the skies over Siberia.

The worldwide astronomy community is paying close attention to this asteroid and any others that could potentially impact the planet using multiple telescopes as well as measurements to detail the objects’ positions in space, Farnocchia said.

“We are tracking this object every night,” he said.

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(WASHINGTON) — A person arrested outside of the Capitol with a knife and two potential incendiary devices told officers they wanted to kill Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and also leveled threats against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and House Speaker Mike Johnson, according to newly unsealed charging documents.

Ryan English allegedly approached officers outside the Capitol on Monday and said, “I’d like to turn myself in,” and then told the officers they were in possession of knifes and two Molotov cocktails, according to charging documents. Officers searched English’s clothes and found a folding knife, a lighter and two 50 milliliter bottles of vodka with a cloth on top.

English told officers they were there to “Kill Scott Bessent,” who was confirmed by the Senate on Monday as the new treasury secretary. English also had a note stating, “This is terrible but I cant do nothing while nazis kill my sisters,” according to charging documents.

After English was taken into custody, English told officers they traveled to Washington, D.C., from Massachusetts on Sunday with the intention of killing Johnson and/or Hegseth, whom English called a “Nazi,” documents said. They also expressed a desire to burn down the conservative Heritage Foundation, documents said.

On the way to D.C., English stopped at a library in Chevy Chase, Maryland, and saw Reddit posts mentioning Bessent’s confirmation hearing, which “altered” their plans, according to the charging documents.

English then bought the bottles of vodka, which they said they intended to ignite and throw “at Bessent’s feet,” the documents said. English said if they were able to get close enough to Bessent, they would’ve stabbed him with a knife, the documents said.

English told officers that when they traveled to the Capitol to conduct surveillance, English surmised they “would have to kill, at least, three U.S. Capitol Police Officers to get to Bessent and kill him,” according to the charging documents. English “expressed acceptance and content with the possibility of suicide by cop,” the affidavit said.

English faces charges of carrying a firearm, dangerous weapon, explosive or incendiary device on Capitol grounds and unlawful receipt, possession and/or transfer of a firearm.

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