Three Rockford Area Men Charged with Arson

U.S. Attorney’s Office
Northern District of Illinois
16 March 2016

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

ROCKFORD — Three local men were indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury in Rockford, Ill. on charges of arson.

JASON VANDUYN, 39, of Machesney Park, Ill.; and BRIAN BURD, 48, and ROBERT WARMOTH, 42, both of Rockford, were all charged with one count of arson and one count of conspiracy to commit arson.

The indictment alleges that between June 7 and 12, 2015, Vanduyn recruited Burd and Warmoth to blow up a pickup truck. According to the indictment, Vanduyn had been in a fistfight with the owner of the truck on June 7, 2015, and Vanduyn wanted to exact revenge on the owner. The indictment states that Vanduyn offered to pay Burd and Warmoth and provided them with an explosive to use. During the early morning hours of June 12, 2015, Warmoth drove Burd to an area near Theodore Street in Loves Park, Ill., where the truck was parked. Burd smashed a window on the truck and placed the explosive in the truck, the indictment charges. No one was injured in the ensuing explosion.

Each count of arson and conspiracy to commit arson carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 5 years in prison and a maximum penalty of up to 20 years in prison, in addition to a fine of up to $250,000. If convicted, the court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal sentencing statutes and the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines.

Vanduyn was arrested this morning and pleaded not guilty during his arraignment today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Iain D. Johnston. Vanduyn was ordered to be held in federal custody until a detention hearing on March 21, 2016, at 9:30 a.m. Burd and Warmoth are scheduled to appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Johnston for arraignment on March 17, 2016, at 11:30 a.m.

The public is reminded that an indictment contains only charges and is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent and are entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

The indictment was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Michael Anderson, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of Federal Bureau of Investigation; Jeffery Magee, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; and, Rodney Scott, Chief of the Loves Park Police Department.

The investigation was conducted under the auspices of the FBI Safe Streets Task Force, which includes representatives from the FBI, ATF, Loves Park Police Department, Winnebago County Sheriff’s Department, and Rockford Police Department.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Margaret J. Schneider.

Date	Document Name & Details	Documents
15 March 2016 indictment date	United States of America v. Jason Vanduyn, Brian Burd, and Robert Warmoth Indictment United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division	PDF - 56KB - 4 pages