Timothy O’Donnell, disguised in a Joker mask but easily identifiable from a neck tattoo, set fire to a Chicago Police SUV in the Loop on Saturday and now faces federal charges for the damage, according to a criminal complaint released Tuesday.
O’Donnell, of Chicago, was arrested at an apartment on Tuesday.
The suspect waived his Miranda rights and admitted he was the person in the photographs. Authorities found a Joker mask inside the apartment.
Photographs from witnesses, show O’Donnell opening the gas cap of the squad car in the 200 block of North State Street on Saturday. Another photo shows O’Donnell sitting on the street as the car erupts in flames. Another photo depicts him standing in front the engulfed vehicle, wearing the mask but also showing his neck tattoo with the word “Pretty.”
Officials reported Tuesday that about 90 city vehicles, mostly police cars, were damaged in the violence. About 20 vehicles were destroyed.
Protests nationwide continue past curfew. It’s the second week of protests over George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis police custody.
Current and former U.S. intelligence officials have expressed dismay at the similarity between events at home and the signs of decline or democratic regression they were trained to detect in other nations. “This is what happens in countries before a collapse. It really does unnerve me,” said Gail Helt, a former CIA analyst.
