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A Minnesota man has been sentenced to four years in prison helping torch a Minneapolis police station in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death, prosecutors said.
Dylan Shakespeare Robinson, 23, of Brainerd, was also ordered to pay $12 million in restitution for damage to Minneapolis’ third police precinct during rioting on May 28, 2020, the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota said Wednesday.
Robinson, who pleaded guilty in December to one count of conspiracy to commit arson, was caught on video throwing a Molotov cocktail, according to a criminal complaint unsealed in Colorado, where he fled prior to being arrested.
He was also seen lighting a second Molotov cocktail for another rioter, who tossed the firebomb toward the police station, prosecutors said.
“Mr. Robinson chose to depart from lawful protest and instead engaged in violence and destruction,” Acting US Attorney Anders Folk said. “The arson at the Minneapolis Police Department’s Third Precinct put lives at risk and contributed to widespread lawlessness in Minneapolis.”
Robinson also boasted about his actions on his Snapchat account, saying “These guys have never made a Molotov … Rookies,” according to the criminal complaint.
Three other co-conspirators in the fire, which forced cops to flee the building, have all pleaded guilty to one count each of conspiracy to commit arson.
The defendants, Bryce Michael Williams, 27; Davon De-Andre Turner, 25; and Branden Michael Wolfe, 23, are currently awaiting sentencing.
Court documents show hundreds of protesters descended upon the police precinct following the death of Floyd, a black man who was handcuffed as Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for more than nine minutes. The caught-on-camera sparked fervent protests against police brutality locally and across the nation, including some that turned violent.
Chauvin, who was fired by the department along with three other cops charged in Floyd’s death, was convicted last week of all three murder and manslaughter counts he faced. He faces up to 40 years in prison.
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