Man takes plea deal in 2016 May Day Molotov cocktail attack on SPD

A 33-year-old former Seattle man has pleaded guilty to throwing unlit Molotov cocktails at police officers during the 2016 May Day protest downtown.

Wil Casey Floyd was arrested last April, after having moved to Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.

Floyd purchased the supplies and constructed six incendiary devices using beer bottles and gasoline, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. During the protest, he has admitted to throwing five of the unlit Molotov cocktails at Seattle Police officers.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office release states one of the cocktails broke at an officer’s feet, and was ignited when a flash-bang grenade went off. The officer sustained burns to his legs when his trousers caught fire, the release states.

Floyd had reportedly been wearing black clothing and a gas mask, but then ditched a bag with the remaining Molotov cocktail and changed his clothes in order to elude law enforcement.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office reports the man was identified by evidence left at the scene at Fourth Avenue South and South Seattle Boulevard and surveillance footage. The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force and SPD investigated the case.

Floyd pleaded guilty on Thursday, Feb. 22, having been offered a plea agreement for a recommendation of no more than 37 months in prison.

For the charge of unlawful possession of a destructive device, Floyd could face up to 10 years in prison depending on how Chief U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez decides his sentence on June 1.