ATLANTA — The U.S. Department of Justice is offering a $10,000 reward for information that helps them arrest a Kennesaw man accused of arson and damaging an Atlanta U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in 2020.
Ronald Watson aka Sarah Watson, Miranda Kyle and Emily Smith, 28 of Kennesaw, was charged for arson and destruction of government property following an attack on the ICE building in Atlanta during the summer of 2020.
The FBI has announced a $10,000 reward for information leading to Watson’s arrest. The charges relate to an incident where masked individuals caused over $78,000 in damage to the ICE building using rocks, cinder blocks, and Molotov cocktails.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
“The right to peacefully protest never excuses acts of violence,” U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg said in a statement.
Hertzberg said the attack occurred on July 25, 2020, when a crowd gathered outside the ICE building in Atlanta. Several individuals breached the fences and vandalized the building.
TRENDING STORIES:
- Former Pace Academy teacher arrested for sexual battery on minors after spanking students
- Man kidnapped, shot 17 times before being dumped in Gwinnett church parking lot
- Gov. Kemp sending 300 National Guard soldiers to D.C. for ‘crime emergency’
Inside the building, law enforcement discovered blood near a broken window and a lighter fluid bottle near an unexploded Molotov cocktail.
Watson was identified based on evidence collected after his 2023 felony conviction for assaulting a public safety officer in Oregon.
Prior to the attack, Watson posted anti-ICE messages on social media, including a depiction of an ICE agent being attacked.
“The First Amendment does not allow individuals to commit arson or destroy property,” FBI Atlanta Special Agent in Charge Paul Brown said.
[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]