A tragic accident occurred at an electric vehicle charging station in October when 17-year-old Caleb Ortiz was fatally electrocuted while attempting to steal a battery from the unit. The incident took place around 2:00 a.m., when Caleb reportedly arrived with a saw and tried to dismantle the charging system.
According to investigators, Caleb made contact with a high-voltage component during the attempted theft. The current, estimated at around 220 volts, caused severe injuries. Because the incident happened late at night and no one else was present, Caleb was not discovered until early the next morning. Emergency responders were called immediately, but he was pronounced deceased upon their arrival.
Authorities later confirmed that this was not Caleb’s first encounter with the law. He had previously been arrested for vehicle theft but was released because he was a minor at the time.
Following the incident, Caleb’s mother filed a lawsuit against the charging station operator, Voltage Energy, seeking $65 million in damages. She argued that the company failed to implement adequate safety features and should have taken stronger precautions to prevent accidental contact with electrical components.
Voltage Energy’s legal team, however, pushed back against the claim. Their attorneys stated that the charging station was designed and installed in full compliance with national safety standards, and that the equipment included warnings and safeguards intended to prevent public access to high-voltage areas. They emphasized that the system was never meant to be disassembled by unauthorized individuals.
The case has sparked public debate about liability, safety standards, and the responsibilities of both companies and individuals when it comes to increasingly common electric-vehicle infrastructure.
