The man falsified a police report that a Tesla car hit him in a parking lot while he is ignorant of the fact that all Tesla vehicles record their camera footage, the man said a Tesla “backed into him”, causing him to fall on the pavement. The 47-year-old man, identified by the local police as Arthur Bates Jr, also claimed that the vehicle driver fled the scene after the incident. A video shared by the police department showed how the man staged the whole episode on September 3.

The clip has no sound. It showed Mr Bates suddenly falling behind the vehicle and dramatising the “accident”. He tried to seek the attention of passers-by and remained on the pavement for some time, then turning to his side and dialling his mobile phone, possibly informing the authorities. The vehicle then moves away from him and goes on its way. The Tesla driver appeared to come to him and checked on him before leaving.