Elon Musk has issued a warning to Cybertruck helpers in Los Angeles over looting.
“Please be careful in some areas,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “There is non-zero risk of armed looters.”
Newsweek has reached out to Tesla‘s Press Department and to the Los Angeles Police Department outside of normal working hours via email for comment.
Why It Matters
Musk’s post comes after at least 20 people in California were arrested for raiding abandoned buildings which have been ravaged by the wildfires which have swept through the wider Los Angeles area.
Los Angeles police implemented a curfew from 6 p.m. Friday evening to 6 a.m. Saturday morning in areas impacted by the fires. The post from Musk is the latest involvement from the tech titan in the wildfires.
What To Know
Musk last week sent Cybertrucks to help those affected in LA and asked anyone who owns one to drive around in areas which have been hit by the wildfires with a Starlink terminal on the roof and open WiFi.
With Los Angles having been scorched by several wildfires, cell service has reportedly dropped out over much of the city. Wildfires can destroy cell towers, power lines and other critical communication infrastructure, which can cause service outages.
TV crews having been using SpaceX‘s Starlink to broadcast coverage of the fires, and posting on X on Sunday, Musk said that he would position Cybertrucks with Starlinks and free WiFi in areas which need it the most in the LA and Malibu area.
Starlink, developed by Musk’s SpaceX, is a satellite internet service designed to provide high-speed, low-latency broadband internet around the world, especially in remote or underserved areas. Musk provided Starlink to North Carolina when it was hit by a hurricane in 2024.
Musk’s looting warning comes amid heated exchanges online with California Governor Gavin Newsom. Last week, Musk posted on X that the fires in California were “easily avoidable” and “nonsense regulations” are to blame.
Musk recently shared a post where Newsom was filmed in an interview speaking about looting. The caption stated: “LOOTING: Newsom and California Democrats literally decriminalized looting, barring police from arresting looters and prosecutors from prosecuting them. Now he’s opposed to looting.”
In response, Newsom said: “Stop encouraging looting by lying and telling people it’s decriminalized. It’s not,” adding: “It’s illegal—as it always has been. Bad actors will be arrested and prosecuted.”
Video Shows Elon Musk’s Army of Cybertrucks on Way to California
One user shared two videos in a post on X, alongside the caption: “An army of Cybertrucks en route to aid California and those affected by the wildfires.”
An army of Cybertrucks en route to aid California and those affected by the wildfires pic.twitter.com/UrmhgGYjR5
— Dalton Brewer (@daltybrewer) January 13, 2025
What People Are Saying
Elon Musk wrote in his post on X, which at the time of writing has been viewed over 11 million times: “Cybertruck side panels are bulletproof to subsonic projectiles (handguns, shotgun & Tommy gun), but the glass is not, so make sure to duck if you see anyone wielding a gun.”
Sheriff Robert Luna said on Wednesday: “If you are thinking about coming into any of these areas to steal from our residents, I’m going to tell you something: You’re going to be caught, you’re going to be arrested and you’re going to be prosecuted.”
Governor Gavin Newsom said: “[The California National Guard] has arrived to Los Angeles to support local law enforcement. Taking advantage of evacuated communities is absolutely sick. Looting will not be tolerated.”
What’s Next
The Los Angeles office for the National Weather Service (NWS) issued a warning on Saturday that the conditions will keep the city under a critical fire risk.
Critical fire weather conditions will persist through midweek as Santa Ana winds intensify. The NWS predicts a potential respite by Thursday or Friday, with increased humidity and a slight chance of rain, offering hope for containment efforts.
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