Milwaukee man accused of trying to burn mobile phone store

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MILWAUKEE (AP) — Federal prosecutors have charged a 26-year-old Milwaukee man with trying to set a mobile phone store on fire with a Molotov cocktail during unrest in Milwaukee following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

Tyshaun Smith is faced with federal counts of attempted arson and the possession of a destructive device.

According to the criminal complaint, police were called to a Boost Mobile late Sunday. When officers arrived, they saw three men standing outside a broken window.

The Journal Sentinel reports authorities allege Smith was holding what appeared to be a Molotov cocktail —already burning — and threw it inside the store before the three men fled.

Smith fell. When police arrested him, they noticed his clothes smelled of gasoline and that he was in possession of a loaded handgun. Police were able to extinguish the burning Molotov cocktail in the store and recover the device.

Smith later told investigators he had noticed on Facebook that rioting was going on and that he then became enraged and felt he had to do something. He said he threw the Molotov cocktail into the store “because he wanted to stand for something.”

It was not immediately known if Smith had an attorney who could comment for him.

Floyd, a handcuffed black man, died in Minneapolis on May 25 after a white police officer pressed his knee on Floyd’s neck, ignoring his “I can’t breathe” cries. Floyd’s death has sparked protests around the country and the world.