Five suspects face federal charges for allegedly setting a police vehicle on fire following a peaceful protest in Gainesville in early June.
The 2018 Ford Explorer belonged to the Gainesville Police Department and was set on fire at 300 Paces Court in Gainesville around 1 a.m. on Tuesday, June 2.
Jessie James Smallwood, 21, Judah Coleman Bailey, 20, Delveccho J. Walker, Jr., 22, Dashun Martin, 23, and Bruce Thompson, 22, were arrested and indicted on federal charges of Conspiracy to Commit Offense or Defraud the United States and the Storage of Explosive Materials.
“The right to peacefully protest is fundamental to our democracy,” says state fire and insurance commissioner John King. “However, vandalism and the destruction of police property are crimes, plain and simple. As a former police officer, I condemn this activity in the strongest terms, and I am thankful that these suspects have been brought to justice.”
Commissioner King’s Fire Investigations Unit will continue working with the Gainesville Police Department and the FBI in this case.
