33 year old Tyler W. Massengill believed that his ex-girlfriend had gotten an abortion at the Peoria Health Center in Peoria, Illinois. His desire for revenge led to him setting the healthcare facility on fire on January 15th, 2023. He was arrested shortly after that and eventually pleaded guilty to charges related to setting the building on fire. On Wednesday, August 16th, Massengill finally received his sentence in a Federal courtroom in Peoria. According to the FBI in Springfield, Massengill has received a sentence of 10 years in prison followed by 3 years of supervised release. He’s also been ordered to pay the Peoria Health Center $1.45 million dollars in restitution.
Following the announcement of the sentencing Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke spoke to the media: “This defendant’s violent conduct severely damaged the Peoria Health Center and obstructed patients’ access to reproductive health services.” She continued “The Justice Department will continue to aggressively prosecute such unlawful, destructive acts, and to protect the clinics that provide reproductive health services, as well as their patients and staff.”
“The defendant’s destructive actions in setting fire to the Peoria Health Clinic were reprehensible and limited the ability of women in our community to access important reproductive health services,” said U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Harris for the Central District of Illinois. “We are grateful to our federal and local law enforcement partners for their excellent work on this investigation.”
“Massengill’s actions represent the very real threat posed by extremists in our communities,” said Special Agent in Charge David Nanz of the FBI Springfield Field Office. “Protecting the American people from such extremists remains a top priority for the FBI and our team remains laser-focused on identifying, investigating and disrupting individuals who cross the line from expressing protected speech to violating federal law.”
“Any violent act like this is unacceptable. Worse here, is that this defendant used violence to target health care providers and their patients,” said Director Steven Dettelbach of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) . “I want to commend the ATF investigators, the prosecutors and our partners for taking action to protect the victims of this violent and potentially lethal arson.”
The FBI office in Springfield and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms worked together on the investigation along with several other law enforcement agencies.
