Man firebombed home over parking dispute in Missouri, feds say

After getting into a dispute with someone over a parking spot, a Missouri man firebombed the person’s home, federal authorities said.

The 31-year-old man is accused of trying to damage or destroy a St. Louis home in March 2022, according to a June 27 news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri.

Video obtained by law enforcement shows the man in an alleyway behind the home as he filled glass bottles with liquid, prosecutors said in court records.

“DNA evidence links (him) to unexploded Molotov cocktails thrown at the residence at the same time as those that ignited and caused a fire at (the home),” authorities said.

The St. Louis man was indicted in April on a felony county of damaging or destroying a building by fire and a felony count of possession of an unregistered destructive device, records show.

He was arrested on June 22, officials said, and he is being held in jail until his trial.

The man has pleaded not guilty to both charges. His defense attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment from McClatchy News on June 28.

Federal authorities said he and the victim did not know each other “and only had a brief encounter and argument over a parking space.”

If the man is convicted on both charges, he faces up to 15 years in prison and up to a $260,000 fine.

This story was originally published June 28, 2023 at 12:37 PM with the headline "Man firebombed home over parking dispute in Missouri, feds say."