A man who recently moved to Barnhart from Kansas City has been accused of shooting at vehicles and setting one on fire at a Kansas City Tesla store. According to court documents, the man informed detectives that he targeted the dealership because he was furious over Elon Musk’s role in President Donald Trump’s administration.
In February, Kevin A. Harkins, 27, allegedly fired and set fire to a Cybertruck, shot a Tesla car, and damaged another Cybertruck as bullets ricocheted off the other cars. According to an affidavit filed in the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri in Kansas City, investigators discovered incendiary devices thrown at one of the trucks, as well as a lighter and a palm torch at the dealership.
Harkins was residing in the Kansas City area at the time of the event and had relocated to Barnhart in August. When approached by FBI officials on September 11, he claimed that he targeted Tesla automobiles because Musk, Tesla’s CEO, “had a big impact in the federal government, which affected the jobs of lots of people,” according to court filings.
Harkins was charged with malicious destruction of property and unlawful possession of an unregistered firearm and destructive device in US District Court in Kansas City on September 12.
Messages sent to an email address and a phone number given for Harkins were not returned to the Leader. There was no attorney named for Harkins in court records.
Harkins allegedly destroyed the vehicles when Musk led the Department of Government Efficiency, which slashed various federal government programs early in Trump’s second term. According to the affidavit, he told investigators that he thought Musk should not have been working with the government.
Harkins referred to Musk as a “South African autocrat” who is “trying to buy out and run the country.” The article said he claimed that “weeds needed to be plucked” and that “difficulties on all sides of the political spectrum” were “causing the downfall of the country.”
Reports claim that Harkins expressed his frustration with a group of billionaires dragging him through the dirt.
According to the affidavit, police and firemen were dispatched to the KC Tesla Center, 10111 State Line Road, in Kansas City around 9:30 p.m. on February 13 in response to reports of gunshots and fire. Investigators discovered the damaged automobiles, an “ignitable liquid” that had been spilled on the ground and allowed to burn, shattered glass, two beer bottles, burnt cloth, and lighters.
A 2024 Tesla Cybertruck was shot nine times and severely damaged by fire. The truck was worth $81,958, according to the report.
Investigators discovered seven bullet holes in a Tesla Model Y, as well as two beer bottles, one of which included shreds of a black plaid shirt. The report revealed that a suspected bullet ricochet destroyed another 2024 Tesla Cybertruck.
A resident near the dealership informed police that 12 to 15 gunshots were fired around 9:25 p.m. and that he saw a man fire another 12 to 15 shots at the dealership. The person challenged the man shooting at the dealership with a weapon and urged him to get on the ground, but the man cursed the person who lives nearby and fled, according to court filings.
According to the affidavit, another resident near the dealership reported that the vandalism resulted in approximately 30 rounds fired.
Tesla camera film captured a person entering the parking area shortly before a fire broke out near the vehicles, and the culprit seemed to throw incendiary items at a Cybertruck. According to the report, investigators discovered a bottle that had been fashioned into a Molotov cocktail.
A license plate reader device at the junction of 103rd Street and State Line Road acquired a photograph of a Volkswagen Jetta registered to Harkins driving away from the scene following the interaction with a witness. According to court records, investigators followed Harkins to businesses and homes in the Kansas City area in May, June, and July before he relocated to Barnhart.
In early July, FBI officers witnessed Harkins moving furniture from his Kansas City home “as if he were moving out.” They then tracked his automobile at the Barnhart residence for many days as he worked at a St. Louis-area firm, according to the report.
Harkins reported the Barnhart address on his job records. On September 11, FBI investigators from Kansas City and St. Louis went to the Barnhart home, where he was sleeping in the basement, and executed a search warrant, according to the report.
Investigators discovered a 9-millimeter handgun, magazines, and fabric scraps in his room that were comparable to those found with one of the bottles in the Tesla parking lot, according to the report.
Harkins first denied involvement in the Kansas City vandalism to investigators, but he later read about it. According to the story, he also stated that his brother, who died of an overdose recently, may have been to blame for the damage.
However, when authorities discovered that the fabric found in the Barnhart residence matched the shirt remnants found at the dealership, Harkins admitted to perpetrating the damage, according to the report.
He told detectives he was unhappy and upset after separating from his wife last year, and he had begun binge drinking. He claimed he was “blackout drunk” when he vandalized the automobiles, according to the complaint.
Harkins allegedly admitted to firing approximately 32 bullets at the cars and throwing Molotov cocktails at the Cybertruck. He claimed to have gone to a store, stolen some liquor, and then returned to the scene to see if any of the vehicles were still on fire, according to reports.
According to court records, roughly a month after Harkins destroyed the Cybertrucks and the car at the dealership, another person reportedly set fire to two Cybertrucks and two charging stations.
Owen McIntire, 19, has been charged with damage done on March 17. He faces the same felony accusations as Harkins and is slated to stand trial in August 2026.
The Kansas City crimes occurred during a wave of damage against Tesla properties in other states, which Attorney General Pam Bondi termed “domestic terrorism” earlier this year.
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