{"id":107842,"date":"2026-10-21T16:04:21","date_gmt":"2026-10-21T20:04:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842"},"modified":"2026-10-21T16:04:24","modified_gmt":"2026-10-21T20:04:24","slug":"elon-musk-austin-shooter-tesla-assault","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842","title":{"rendered":"ELON MUSK SAYS AUSTIN MASS SHOOTER WAS FIRED FROM TESLA AFTER ALLEGED WORKPLACE ASSAULT"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

AUSTIN, TEXAS \u2014 October 21, 2026.<\/strong> Elon Musk has renewed attention on the man responsible for a deadly mass shooting in Austin, Texas, after claiming the gunman had previously been fired from Tesla following an alleged assault on a female coworker. The remarks concern Ndiaga Diagne, 53, who killed three people and injured 15 others outside a downtown Austin bar on March 1 before being fatally shot by police.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking during a conversation with author Walter Isaacson, Musk said Diagne had worked at Tesla’s Austin manufacturing facility and was dismissed after allegedly attacking a woman who stepped on his prayer rug. The workplace assault allegation is documented in a civil lawsuit, although the specific circumstances described by Musk have not been independently established.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WHAT ELON MUSK SAID ABOUT THE FORMER TESLA WORKER<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Musk described the incident while discussing individual responsibility, cultural differences and the danger of drawing broad conclusions about entire groups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to accounts of the interview, Musk said the employee had been dismissed in December 2025 after a confrontation involving a female coworker and a prayer rug.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His remarks prompted renewed attention to a workplace lawsuit filed months earlier, following the identification of Diagne as the Austin shooter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The allegation concerning the prayer rug comes from Musk’s account. Available court reporting confirms an alleged assault during a prayer break but does not independently establish every detail of the encounter or the employment decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TESLA EMPLOYEE FILED LAWSUIT AFTER DECEMBER INCIDENT<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Lillian Mendoza Brady, then 65, filed a lawsuit against Tesla in March 2026, alleging that Diagne physically assaulted her at the company’s Texas manufacturing facility on December 4, 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the complaint, the alleged attack occurred while Diagne was taking a permitted prayer break in a common area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brady’s attorneys said she suffered injuries to her neck and back. The lawsuit accused Tesla of negligence, alleging that the company failed to provide a sufficiently safe workplace and did not disclose Diagne’s identity to her after the incident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The allegations remain part of civil litigation and should not be presented as findings of liability against Tesla.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

THREE PEOPLE KILLED IN MARCH 1 AUSTIN SHOOTING<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The later mass shooting occurred outside Buford’s Backyard Beer Garden on West Sixth Street in Austin during the early morning hours of March 1.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the FBI, Diagne initially fired toward the crowded establishment from a vehicle before continuing the attack on foot with a rifle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Three people were killed: Savitha Shan, Ryder Harrington and Jorge Pederson. Fifteen others were injured, according to the FBI’s subsequent investigative update.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Austin police officers confronted and fatally shot Diagne shortly after the attack began.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FBI FOUND NO EVIDENCE OF FOREIGN TERRORIST DIRECTION<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Federal investigators determined that Diagne acted alone and had not previously been the subject of an FBI investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The FBI reported that he wore clothing displaying an Iranian flag design and religious wording during the attack. Investigators also identified his admiration for Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as one factor relevant to the case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, authorities found no evidence that Diagne belonged to, received instructions from or was financed by a foreign terrorist organization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The FBI has not established a conclusive explanation for why he selected the location or carried out the shooting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

RELIGIOUS IDENTITY DOES NOT ESTABLISH MOTIVE<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Musk’s remarks have also prompted discussion about religious identity and politically motivated violence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The attacker’s individual conduct, his reported ideological interests and the evidence collected by investigators must be assessed separately. His religious references do not establish that an entire religious community shares responsibility for his actions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The FBI’s findings remain more limited than some of the broader interpretations circulating online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The criminal investigation has continued as authorities review evidence and seek a fuller understanding of the attacker’s motivations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Separately, Brady’s civil lawsuit has raised questions about workplace safety, employer responsibilities and how allegations of employee violence are handled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Musk’s latest comments provide his account of the earlier incident, but they do not resolve the outstanding factual and legal questions surrounding the workplace allegations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the families of the three people killed and the survivors of the Austin shooting, the FBI’s continuing investigation remains central to understanding the circumstances of the attack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

AUSTIN, TEXAS \u2014 October 21, 2026. Elon Musk has renewed attention on the man responsible for a deadly mass shooting in Austin, Texas, after claiming the gunman had previously been fired from Tesla following an alleged assault on a female coworker. The remarks concern Ndiaga Diagne, 53, who killed three people and injured 15 others […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":107843,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2209,2191],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-107842","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-breaking-news","category-national"],"yoast_head":"\nElon Musk Says Austin Shooter Was Fired From Tesla<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Elon Musk says the Austin shooter was fired from Tesla after an alleged workplace assault. Read what the lawsuit and FBI investigation establish.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Elon Musk Says Austin Shooter Was Fired From Tesla\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Elon Musk says the Austin shooter was fired from Tesla after an alleged workplace assault. Read what the lawsuit and FBI investigation establish.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Informant\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-10-21T20:04:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-10-21T20:04:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/USA5-1.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"The Informant Editorial Team\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"The Informant Editorial Team\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/?p=107842#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/?p=107842\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"The Informant Editorial Team\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/df16348abd6a0b2c6214d8dfa6e4dfa2\"},\"headline\":\"ELON MUSK SAYS AUSTIN MASS SHOOTER WAS FIRED FROM TESLA AFTER ALLEGED WORKPLACE ASSAULT\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-10-21T20:04:21+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-21T20:04:24+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/?p=107842\"},\"wordCount\":715,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/?p=107842#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/USA5-1.png\",\"articleSection\":[\"BREAKING NEWS\",\"National\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/?p=107842\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/?p=107842\",\"name\":\"Elon Musk Says Austin Shooter Was Fired From Tesla\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/?p=107842#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/?p=107842#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/USA5-1.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-10-21T20:04:21+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-21T20:04:24+00:00\",\"description\":\"Elon Musk says the Austin shooter was fired from Tesla after an alleged workplace assault. Read what the lawsuit and FBI investigation establish.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/?p=107842#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/?p=107842\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/?p=107842#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/USA5-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/USA5-1.png\",\"width\":1920,\"height\":1080},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/?p=107842#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"ELON MUSK SAYS AUSTIN MASS SHOOTER WAS FIRED FROM TESLA AFTER ALLEGED WORKPLACE ASSAULT\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"The Informant\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"The Informant\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/722162734_2079865859598950_8719795528609594968_n.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/722162734_2079865859598950_8719795528609594968_n.jpg\",\"width\":960,\"height\":958,\"caption\":\"The Informant\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/df16348abd6a0b2c6214d8dfa6e4dfa2\",\"name\":\"The Informant Editorial Team\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/ec9a6b602057918388b2a245601342c358f2d914bbf72c1929a792b2ee350f7d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/ec9a6b602057918388b2a245601342c358f2d914bbf72c1929a792b2ee350f7d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/ec9a6b602057918388b2a245601342c358f2d914bbf72c1929a792b2ee350f7d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"The Informant Editorial Team\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theinformant.com\\\/?author=6\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Elon Musk Says Austin Shooter Was Fired From Tesla","description":"Elon Musk says the Austin shooter was fired from Tesla after an alleged workplace assault. Read what the lawsuit and FBI investigation establish.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Elon Musk Says Austin Shooter Was Fired From Tesla","og_description":"Elon Musk says the Austin shooter was fired from Tesla after an alleged workplace assault. Read what the lawsuit and FBI investigation establish.","og_url":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842","og_site_name":"The Informant","article_published_time":"2026-10-21T20:04:21+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-10-21T20:04:24+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1920,"height":1080,"url":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/USA5-1.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"The Informant Editorial Team","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"The Informant Editorial Team","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842"},"author":{"name":"The Informant Editorial Team","@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/#\/schema\/person\/df16348abd6a0b2c6214d8dfa6e4dfa2"},"headline":"ELON MUSK SAYS AUSTIN MASS SHOOTER WAS FIRED FROM TESLA AFTER ALLEGED WORKPLACE ASSAULT","datePublished":"2026-10-21T20:04:21+00:00","dateModified":"2026-10-21T20:04:24+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842"},"wordCount":715,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/USA5-1.png","articleSection":["BREAKING NEWS","National"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842","url":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842","name":"Elon Musk Says Austin Shooter Was Fired From Tesla","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/USA5-1.png","datePublished":"2026-10-21T20:04:21+00:00","dateModified":"2026-10-21T20:04:24+00:00","description":"Elon Musk says the Austin shooter was fired from Tesla after an alleged workplace assault. Read what the lawsuit and FBI investigation establish.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/USA5-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/USA5-1.png","width":1920,"height":1080},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?p=107842#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"ELON MUSK SAYS AUSTIN MASS SHOOTER WAS FIRED FROM TESLA AFTER ALLEGED WORKPLACE ASSAULT"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/","name":"The Informant","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/#organization","name":"The Informant","url":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/722162734_2079865859598950_8719795528609594968_n.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/722162734_2079865859598950_8719795528609594968_n.jpg","width":960,"height":958,"caption":"The Informant"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/#\/schema\/person\/df16348abd6a0b2c6214d8dfa6e4dfa2","name":"The Informant Editorial Team","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ec9a6b602057918388b2a245601342c358f2d914bbf72c1929a792b2ee350f7d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ec9a6b602057918388b2a245601342c358f2d914bbf72c1929a792b2ee350f7d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ec9a6b602057918388b2a245601342c358f2d914bbf72c1929a792b2ee350f7d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"The Informant Editorial Team"},"url":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/?author=6"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107842","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=107842"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107842\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":107845,"href":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107842\/revisions\/107845"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/107843"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=107842"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=107842"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theinformant.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=107842"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}