[Ppnews] Judge unseals arson charges

[Political Prisoner News]

http://www.registerguard.com/news/2007/09/13/a1.arsonsnitch.0913.p1.php?section=cityregion


Judge unseals arson charges
By Bill Bishop
The Register-Guard
Published: Thursday, September 13, 2007

After three years sealed under court order, charges have been made 
public against the man who apparently participated in at least a 
dozen arsons for environmental causes and then worked undercover for 
investigators who brought down the largest eco-arson ring in the nation.

Jacob Jeremiah Ferguson, 34, is charged with one count each of 
attempted arson and arson stemming from the first of at least 20 
attacks in five states by a group that became known as "The Family."

Court records indicate that Ferguson made a deal to cooperate with 
prosecutors in order to avoid jail. No date has been set for his 
appearance in federal court in Eugene.
U.S. District Judge Ann Aiken unsealed the charges Tuesday at the 
request of federal prosecutors who said secrecy no longer is needed, 
according to court records.

Last month, Aiken completed the sentencings of 10 core members of the 
arson conspiracy. They received prison terms ranging from just over 
three years to 13 years. Three less-active conspirators face charges 
in Washington state. Four other suspects are fugitives.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Ferguson 
began wearing a recording device in 2004 to capture incriminating 
conversations with eight of his former arson partners. As a result, 
he was reviled as a "snitch" on Internet sites devoted to radical 
environmental activism.

Ferguson, according to court records, took part as many as 14 of the 
group's crimes - including the destruction of the Oakridge Ranger 
Station in 1996, the Cavel West horsemeat packing plant in Redmond in 
1997, the U.S. Forest Industries office in Medford in 1998, the 
Childers Meat Co. in Eugene in 1999, and the Superior Lumber Co. in 
Glendale in 2001.

Court records indicate that Ferguson was an enthusiastic participant 
in The Family's arsons, traveling widely in Western states to scope 
out potential targets for attack.

Police apparently believed - as it turned out incorrectly - that 
Ferguson was involved in the arson of 35 SUVs at the former Romania 
truck dealership in Eugene in 2001. Under pressure from that 
investigation, Ferguson evidently agreed to cooperate.

He is charged in connection with an attempted arson of the Detroit 
Ranger Station on Oct. 28, 1996, in which an incendiary device failed 
to ignite, and arson of a pickup truck that was destroyed at the 
ranger station.

His case is expected to resolve with a court hearing to enter a 
guilty plea and have the probationary sentence imposed.



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