Truckloads of Tesla batteries continue to be stolen before they even leave the factory

Trailers contain millions Dollar worth of Tesla car and house Batteries have allegedly been stolen directly from loading docks at the company’s Nevada facilities at least 11 times since last December, according to sheriff’s records obtained by WIRED.

“It’s an epidemic right now,” says Sam Hatley, a Story County Sheriff’s Detective who has been investigating the Tesla cases.

Three men are suspected of carrying out a robbery They were arrested In January, he was charged with felony possession of stolen property. But the wider spate of merchandise thefts that have plagued Elon Musk’s car company is still under investigation and has not been previously reported.

Hatley told WIRED that the incidents documented in sheriff’s records reflect only part of the problem. Investigators are tracking a total of 17 alleged thefts of merchandise this year involving Tesla and other companies in Story County, though Hatley declined to specifically say how many people were involved in the auto industry. One of the alleged operations targeting Tesla also hit a battery recycling company Red wood materials. Hatley adds that these numbers may still be an underestimate, because companies are sometimes reluctant to disclose the theft of their products.

Researchers in the transportation industry Estimated last year Shipping thefts in the U.S. nearly doubled from 2022 to 2024 and are now collectively costing businesses nearly $18 million per day, which could translate into higher prices for shoppers. It was the electronic components Repeated targetAccording to theft prevention consultancy Verisk CargoNet.

Of particular concern to law enforcement and the shipping industry is the emergence of so-called strategic thefts, such as what Tesla has allegedly witnessed. These operations do not involve thieves snatching merchandise from an unattended trailer at a public rest stop. Instead, organized groups have found ways to exploit loopholes in security protocols The world’s most valuable car makerincluding the use of fake ID cards and the loose relationships the company has with truck drivers who transport its products.

WIRED learned of the incidents by requesting emergency dispatch records from Story County, where Tesla’s battery factory employs an estimated 12,000 people, making it the area’s largest employer by far. Nearly 2 percent of the county’s emergency incidents last year originated from 5.4 million square feet The so-called giga factoryWhich Tesla works in partnership with Panasonic. (There seems to be a large number of calls, though Butt calls 911.)

A Tesla assistant manager told investigators that some of the initial thefts stemmed from failure to adhere to basic security protocols, according to sheriff’s reports. Since then, the automaker has tightened its procedures, including beginning to verify drivers’ identities at the factory gate, according to sheriff’s records. “It’s definitely helpful,” Hatley says. Thefts “happen, but not frequently.”

Tesla, the associate director mentioned in the reports, and Redwood Materials did not respond to requests for comment.

Powerwalls stolen

The first of the latest cases occurred in December, and involved two trailers filled with more than $475,000 of Powerwall 3 Residential battery systemswhich was taken from a Tesla property by a dodgy logistics company, according to sheriff’s reports. Authorities recovered the empty trailers about 500 miles away in Southern California.

Tesla’s security team later found some Powerwalls for sale online and notified the authorities. Products cannot be activated when they are flagged as stolen, according to investigators, so there is not much to gain from purchasing them. In another case, an auto parts dealer in Northern California told Tesla and law enforcement that someone had offered to sell them at a discounted price what they suspected were stolen car batteries, which investigators later confirmed.

Tesla reported one additional alleged theft in December and nine more in January. This included an incident on January 19 involving another trailer containing 123 Powerwalls. It was scheduled to arrive at Tesla’s facility in Hayward, California, but it never arrived there. Sheriff’s reports indicate that the semi truck and the company whose driver came to pick up the trailer were not licensed for interstate operations. A freight broker had awarded a contract to move the trailer to an illegal transportation company, according to the sheriff’s reports.