Long Beach Man Gets Prison Time For Using Molotov Cocktail During Immigration Protest: DOJ

LOS ANGELES, CA — A Long Beach man was sentenced Wednesday to two years, six months behind bars for using a Molotov cocktail during an anti-immigration enforcement protest last summer.

Wrackkie Quiogue, 28, pleaded guilty last year to a single federal count of possession of an unregistered destructive device.

A Molotov cocktail is a hand-thrown incendiary weapon consisting of a breakable container filled with flammable substances and equipped with a fuse, typically a glass bottle filled with flammable liquids sealed with a cloth wick.

Quiogue on June 8 was near the Los Angeles Civic Center and was seen by officers holding a Molotov cocktail and lighter, according to authorities. He tried to run away, throwing the device in the process, but was arrested by officers, authorities said.

“When protesting crosses the line into violence, the penalties will be severe,” First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said in a statement when Quiogue was charged, adding that the incident "could have resulted in life-altering or life-ending injuries to police officers, sheriff’s deputies, and innocent bystanders."

City News Service contributed to this report.