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NJ man learns his sentence for setting police car on fire during riots over George Floyd’s death

January 11, 2023 | | Print Article

While the number of people being prosecuted for protesting at the U.S. Capitol on Jan 6., 2021 number close to a thousand, with many charged with little more than trespassing, there have been precious few convictions in the Black Lives Matter riots that swept the nation in the summer of 2020, despite widespread looting and burning.

In a rare occasion that took place on Tuesday, a New Jersey man who admitted to trying to set fire to a Trenton Police Department vehicle was sentenced to more than two years in federal prison, according to Fox News.

Kadeem Dockery, 31, made the admission on May 19, 2021, pleading guilty to one count of attempting to obstruct, impede, or interfere with law enforcement officers during a civil disorder affecting commerce, almost a year after participating in the riot following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. The sentence comes more than 18 mos. later, with Dockery being the last of four men sentenced to prison in connection with protest.

Another incident of rioters trying to set a police vehicle on fire is captured in the video below:

The charge carried a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 — Dockery will have to serve three years of supervised release once he’s freed, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

More from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of New Jersey:

On May 31, 2020, large-scale protests were held throughout the United States, including in Trenton, in response to the death of George Floyd. Although the protest in Trenton was peaceful earlier in the day, violence erupted later. A group of individuals proceeded down East State Street in downtown Trenton and began to riot, smashing store fronts, looting stores, and attacking multiple marked Trenton Police Department vehicles parked on the 100 Block of East State Street.

A City of Trenton street camera and other video footage taken by an individual present on the street captured Dockery light an explosive device and throw it through the open front driver’s side window of a Trenton Police Department vehicle. Dockery then removed his shirt and handed it to Killian Melecio, who then attempted to stuff the shirt in the gas tank of the police vehicle and ignite it. Melecio was then assisted by Justin Spry in attempting to set fire to the police vehicle.  Spry was arrested on scene, but Dockery and Melecio fled. Law enforcement later identified Dockery and Melecio through analysis of street camera and other video footage. They were arrested on Aug. 5, 2020.

 

The FBI and task force officers of the Joint Terrorism Task Force in Newark were credited with the investigation of the crime.

Another participant involved in trying to set the police vehicle on fire, Justin Spry, was sentenced in Oct. 2021, receiving 24 months in prison and three years of supervised release.

 

Tom Tillison
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