Maple Heights Man Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Arson
U.S. Attorney Bridget M. Brennan announced that Timothy Goodner, 20, of Maple Heights, Ohio, pleaded guilty in federal court today to conspiracy to commit arson during the May 30, 2020, demonstrations in downtown Cleveland.
According to court documents, on May 30, 2020, during ongoing demonstrations in downtown Cleveland, a small crowd gathered around the Shaia & PPR parking booth located on West 3rd Street. In this crowd, an unidentified individual is observed using a lighter to ignite a roll of paper towels and cardboard boxes in an attempt to set fire to the parking booth.
While members of the crowd waited for the paper towels and boxes to ignite, a second unidentified individual handed Defendant Timothy Goodner a cardboard box, which Goodner placed inside the booth. The first unidentified individual then inserted the burning paper towels and cardboard boxes inside the parking booth while Goodner and others stood nearby. Goodner then placed additional cardboard boxes inside the booth to accelerate the fire.
After the demonstrations, the Cleveland Division of Police released images and videos of suspects committing various criminal acts to the media. Goodner was identified via these images from numerous anonymous tips.
A sentencing date has not been set. A federal district court judge will determine a sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
This case was investigated by the ATF and the Cleveland Division of Police. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly L. Galvin. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio would like to acknowledge and thank the Cleveland FBI, Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office and the Ohio State Highway Patrol for their assistance in this matter.
