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PORTLAND, Ore. — A 27-year-old Portland man, Tesla protester Davis Nafshun, was arrested on Saturday and faces accusations of pointing a laser inside the South Waterfront Portland Tesla dealership that hurt the eyes of employees on duty at the time.
Portland’s Tesla dealership has attracted several protesters criticizing the actions of the company’s CEO, Elon Musk, and his efforts to take a chainsaw to the size of the federal government.
Other Oregon Tesla dealerships have also faced acts of violent vandalism. In one such incident, a 41-year-old Salem man, Adam Matthew Lansky, stands accused of throwing Molotov Cocktails at a Tesla dealership and faces federal charges.
In Nafshun’s case, police responded to a call from the Tesla dealership on the 4300 block of South Macadam Avenue. A worker said at least one person was pointing a green laser into the dealership and at people inside.
After viewing a video, police identified Nafshun as having done the same during a demonstration outside the building.
Police caught up with Nafshun riding his bike away from the area and took him into custody, despite concerns from several protesters over police intervention.
After being shown the video, the protestors conceded that Nafshun’s actions were “not okay.” Two employees experienced discomfort and problems with their vision, while a third, who had a laser pointed at their eyes days earlier, left the showroom to avoid the incident.
Police recovered a green laser from Nafshun with a Class IIIa information sticker – classified as momentarily hazardous when directly viewed by the FDA, and arrested Nafshun, who faces two counts of unlawful use of a weapon, two counts of attempting to commit a felony and misdemeanor charges of menacing and reckless endangerment.
He was later released on his own recognizance on the day of his arrest.
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