Two California men have been charged in a shocking scheme to firebomb the John L. Burton Democratic Headquarters in Sacramento, federal authorities announced today.
According to court documents, Ian Benjamin Rogers, 45, of Napa, and Jarrod Copeland, 37, of Vallejo, began planning to attack targets they associated with Democrats after the 2020 Presidential election and sought support from an anti-government militia group.
“Firebombing your perceived political opponents is illegal and does not nurture the sort of open and vigorous debate that created and supports our constitutional democracy,” said U.S. Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds.
The indictment describes how Copeland and Rogers used multiple messaging applications and discussed the attacks on numerous occasions. For example, in late December 2020, Copeland told Rogers he contacted an anti-government militia group to gather support for the movement and in January 2021, Rogers told Copeland “I want to blow up a democrat building bad.”
Law enforcement officers searched Rogers’s home and business on January 15, just four days after that exchange and five days before the trigger that Rogers and Copeland identified as the start of their campaign of violence. They seized a cache of weapons from Rogers’s home, including 45 to 50 firearms, thousands of rounds of ammunition, and five pipe bombs.
Rogers and Copeland are both charged with conspiracy to destroy by fire or explosive a building used or in affecting interstate commerce. Rogers is charged with additional weapons violations, including one count of possession of unregistered destructive devices, and three counts of possession of machine guns. Copeland is charged with an additional count of destruction of records.
If convicted, the defendants face a maximum statutory sentence of 20 years imprisonment, a three-year supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.
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Key Facts
- State: California
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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