After federal prosecutors requested a less harsh sentence for a man in Minneapolis who set a pawn shop afire during the George Floyd riots in 2020, causing one man to die, the fire-setter escaped a murder charge.
“Montez Terriel Lee, 26, pleaded guilty to a single count of arson and was sentenced earlier this month to 10 years in federal prison — much less than the 16 1/2 to 20-year punishment outlined in the sentencing guidelines,” The Washington Examiner noted.
On May 28, 2020, Lee, wearing a mask, burned down the Max It Pawn Shop. Video showed him dousing the store by pouring liquid out from a metal container, then later holding up his fist as the person videotaping him says, “Oh s***, you really did it!”
A second video showed Lee standing in front of the burning pawnshop as someone asks him, “What you do, Tez?” Lee chortles, “F*** this place. We’re going to burn this b**** down!”
The prosecutor’s sentencing documents state, “On June 5, 2020, a man named Oscar Lee Stewart, 30, was reported missing to the Burnsville Police Department by his mother. Mr. Stewart’s mother reported that she had not seen her son since May 28, 2020. Investigators learned that Mr. Stewart’s vehicle had been found near the Max It Pawn. On July 20, 2020, authorities located Mr. Stewart’s body in the rubble of the Max It Pawn.