Plains Township Man Indicted For Firebombing The Luzerne County Children And Youth Office Building

SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that on July 11, 2017, Phillip Finn, Jr, age 47, of Plains Township, Pennsylvania, was indicted by a federal grand jury for stalking, making threatening interstate communications and causing malicious damage to federal property by fire.

The indictment was unsealed today following Finn’s initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karoline Mehalchick. Finn was detained on the charges pending trial.

According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, the indictment alleges that between March 3, 2017 and March 6, 2017, Finn used Facebook, Google and his cell phone to engage in a course of conduct, to harass and intimidate two Luzerne County Children and Youth Services employees. The indictment also alleges that on March 6, 2017, Finn used three Molotov cocktails to damage the Luzerne County Children and Youth Services Office building, located in Wilkes-Barre.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Wilkes-Barre City Police Department, and the Luzerne County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jenny P. Roberts is prosecuting the case.

Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.

A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

The combined maximum penalty under federal law for these offenses is 30 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.

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