Advertisement

Man sentenced for setting fires to government building in Apple Valley during George Floyd protests

Long Lake man threw Molotov cocktails into Dakota County building.

February 12, 2021 at 11:07PM
The fire bombing at the Dakota County Service Center in Apple Valley occurred May 29, four days after George Floyd's death.
(Dakota County Sheriff's Office/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

A Long Lake man was sentenced to five years in prison for setting fires in a government building in Apple Valley as riots took place in Minneapolis over the death of George Floyd.

Garrett Patrick Ziegler, 25, pleaded guilty on Friday in U.S. District Court to aiding and abetting arson. Ziegler and his associate in the case, Fornandous Cortez Henderson, broke windows with baseball bats and threw Molotov cocktails into the Dakota County Western Service Center at 14955 Galaxie Av. on May 29, according to a U.S. Attorney's Office news release.

The building housed a U.S. passport center and several court facilities.

As part of the guilty plea, Ziegler will also be on supervised release for three years and will have to pay $205,872 in restitution.

The two also poured ignitable liquids in and around the broken windows to start fires.

Henderson targeted the building because he was angry with law enforcement regarding the death of Floyd, according to the release. He also had previous court appearances there.

"Ziegler, who was also angry at law enforcement, agreed to the target because of its connection to law enforcement," the release said.

Ziegler admitted that he purchased materials to assemble the Molotov cocktails, including household items and flammable liquids, along with a baseball bat.

Advertisement
Advertisement

Target representatives confirmed to authorities that Ziegler was an employee at their Minnetonka store on 13201 Ridgedale Drive and had purchased some of the items on his Target debit card, according to a complaint filed in U.S. District Court.

Henderson was sentenced in December to more than six years for his involvement. He was convicted of aiding and abetting arson and ordered to pay $205,872 in restitution.

Alex Chhith • 612-673-4759

about the writer

about the writer

Alex Chhith

Reporter

Alex Chhith is a general assignment reporter for the Minnesota Star Tribune.

See Moreicon

More from No Section

See More

Kyiv was targeted with waves of drone and missile attacks overnight into Friday in the largest aerial assault since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began more than three years ago, officials said, amid a renewed Russian push to capture more of its neighbor's land.

Advertisement
Advertisement