Cyril Lartigue, Possession of Unregistered Destructive Device, Texas 2020

AUSTIN, Texas - A Cedar Park man was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison for possessing parts of a destructive device, a Molotov cocktail, with the intent to construct such a device during an evening protest in Austin on May 30, 2020.

Cyril Lartigue, 27, was convicted following a jury trial in October 2021. He was caught on videotape manufacturing a destructive device while in a parking lot directly adjacent to the Austin Municipal Court entrance.

While making the device, Lartigue was interrupted by the oncoming presence of Austin Police Department officers heading in his direction. Lartigue fled the area, leaving the device behind, but returned within minutes to retrieve it.

Police officers later arrested Lartigue inside a nearby portable toilet where he had changed clothes. Inside his backpack officers recovered materials used to manufacture a destructive device, including beer bottles, a bottle with lighter fluid, cloth rags, and a butane lighter along with the clothes he was previously wearing.

Lartigue was charged with possession of unregistered destructive device. He was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison.

“The sentence imposed today demonstrates our office’s commitment to the prosecution of violent crime,” said U.S. Attorney Ashley C. Hoff. “Peaceful protest cannot and must not be conflated with violence and the construction of dangerous weapons like Molotov cocktails.

The ATF, Austin Police Department, Austin Fire Department, and the Texas Department of Public Safety investigated this matter. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Keith Henneke and Gabriel Cohen are prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdtx/pr/cedar-park-man-sentenced-federal-prison-possession-unregistered-destructive-device