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Sam Resto, 29, was arrested on Thursday, Aug. 13 and scheduled to appear in court on Friday, Aug. 14 after allegedly setting an NYPD van on fire in July.
It is alleged that early on Wednesday, July 29, Resto was captured on video setting ablaze an unoccupied NYPD van parked on West 83rd Street near Columbus Avenue in Manhattan.
Prosecutors said that on the video, Resto approached the van, smashed the window with a blunt object, poured gasoline into the interior and set the vehicle on fire before fleeing east towards Central Park.
The NYPD subsequently recovered a backpack in the park belonging to Resto containing clothing similar to items Resto was seen wearing earlier that morning, a Guy Fawkes mask, a red jerry can that smelled of gasoline, a hammer and lighters.
If convicted, Resto faces up to 20 years in prison.
“When Resto set an NYPD van ablaze last month, as we allege today, his actions not only destroyed essential public safety equipment paid for by the people of New York City, he placed the personal safety of those living in the neighborhood and their private property into harm’s way,” FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William Sweeney, Jr. said in a statement.
“Deliberate criminal activity like the type alleged today puts both first responders and private citizens at risk, it is an affront to everything this city is supposed to be about,” Sweeney continued. “Today’s federal charges are the community’s message back to Mr. Resto and others who may choose to engage in this type of criminal behavior – we will not tolerate crimes of this magnitude and the consequences will be significant.”
NYPD Commissioner Dermont Shea added: “Today’s criminal complaint not only seeks justice for the alleged torching of an NYPD van parked in a busy Manhattan neighborhood but answers for a crime that put innocent New Yorkers in considerable danger.“
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