Man sentenced to more than 3 years for plot to burn Seattle police union building

A 35-year-old Renton man has been sentenced to more than three years in federal prison for his part in a plot to burn the Seattle Police Officers Guild building in 2020.

Justin Christopher Moore pleaded guilty in September 2022 to bringing Molotov cocktails to a protest march outside the headquarters of the Seattle Police Officers Guild on Labor Day 2020. On Sept. 13, 2023, he was sentenced in federal court to 40 months.

Prosecutors argued that the act outside the police union's building was inherently dangerous, given that there were more than 1,000 people participating in the march that day.

“Moore’s offense was extremely dangerous and created a substantial risk of injury to numerous bystanders," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd Greenberg for the Western District of Washington in statement. "Moore carried the box of 12 Molotov cocktails in a crowd of over 1,000 people who were participating in the protest march. All of them were in harm’s way if one of the devices had exploded.”