A 33-year-old man has been charged with two counts of aggravated arson and two counts of using an explosive or incendiary device this week for throwing Molotov cocktails at the Conference Center for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Utah State Capitol building in Salt Lake City.
Fire crews found Justin Lee Cromar on the steps of the state Capitol on January 11, where he told the responders he threw the Molotov cocktail to burn down the building. He also stated he threw another at the Conference Center for the Church prior to coming to the Capitol. Utah Highway Patrol troopers were called to assist. Upon inspection, crews found an intact Molotov cocktail in a planter box on the west side of the Conference Center.
Troopers from the Utah Highway Patrol were requested to help. Upon inspection, workers on the west side of the building discovered an undamaged Molotov cocktail in a planter box. On the west side of the Conference Center, a planter box had an entire Molotov cocktail.
Security footage from the Church shows Cromar lighting the wick and throwing it in the planter box, where it failed to ignite fully. The steps of the Capitol near the east door suffered minimal smoke damage from the small fire caused by the Molotov cocktail. Some reports state Cromar told the responding police he was drunk and “sick of people investigating him and following him.”
The charges against Cromar are all first-degree felonies.
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