A Wisconsin man was sentenced in relation to firebombing a pro-life center intended to help pregnant women choose an option other than abortion. The news came after extensive protests and threats made following the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
The news was reported by the U.S. Department of Justice, which indicated that Hridindu Roychowdhury was sentenced to 7.5 years in prison for throwing two Molotov cocktails at a Wisconsin Family Action center in Madison, Wisconsin in May 2022. The suspect pled guilty to the charges last December.
A PhD biochemist who launched the antifa "Jane's Revenge" domestic terrorist movement has been sentenced to 7.5 years in prison for a firebombing terror attack on a pro-life organization in Wisconsin in 2022. Hridindu Sankar Roychowdhury threatened, "If abortions aren’t safe then… pic.twitter.com/vzbrXpBGLE
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) April 13, 2024
Roychowdhury also painted “If abortions aren’t safe then you aren’t either” on the outside of the building. The firebombing left the building with extensive damage. The suspect was originally arrested in Boston after attempting to flee the country.
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) Director Stephen Dettelbach said that “Engaging in an act of terror – in this case, firebombing a business because of their beliefs – is criminal and unamerican. As today’s sentencing demonstrates, it won’t be tolerated.”
FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate said that the sentencing was the “result of the FBI’s commitment to use all of our resources to aggressively pursue anyone who uses violent tactics in an attempt to impose their views on others.”
U.S. Attorney Timothy M. O’Shea for the Western District of Wisconsin said that the arson was “an act of domestic terrorism.”
“Domestic terrorism is cowardly and profoundly undemocratic. It is not speech; it is not an exchange of ideas; instead, it is an attempt to harm or frighten one’s fellow citizens, thus driving Americans apart and weakening the fabric of our democratic society. The U.S. Department of Justice, and this U.S. Attorney’s Office, with our local and federal law enforcement partners will never flinch from holding domestic terrorists accountable,” O’Shea added.
Despite the sentence, Wisconsin Family Action President Emeritus Julaine Appling said that the “court missed an opportunity to strengthen the protection of constitutional rights like free speech and free exercise, rights that have themselves been under assault in recent years. The defendant’s act of domestic terrorism to threaten our people, our families and friends, our neighbors and our greater pro-life community is unconscionable.”
