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 On June 11, 2021, just before 4:00am, emergency responders were
dispatched to the Lincoln IGA, and upon arrival, the building was
engulfed in flames. As firefighters attempted to put out the fire,
police secured the scene. Officers saw Rowland less than a block from
the store and shined flashlights at him. Rowland ran, but a short time
later, not far from the scene, he was found hiding in the backyard of a
residence, under an elevated sandbox.
Once the fire was extinguished, Lincoln Fire Investigators and Illinois
State Fire Marshalls examined the scene and collected evidence,
including surveillance footage. The surveillance footage showed Rowland
was inside the store after it was closed but before the fire started.
The fire investigators concluded that there were three separate and
distinct areas of origin for the fire and the incident was documented as
incendiary.
On September 7, 2022, Rowland pled guilty to arson and criminal damage
to property, each a Class 2 felony. Based on his criminal history,
Rowland faced a possible sentence of between 3 and 14 years in the
Illinois Department of Corrections; however, probation was an option.
In a separate Logan County case, Rowland pled guilty to retail theft, a
Class 3 felony, and faced a possible penalty of between 2 and 10 years
of imprisonment. In a third Logan County case, Rowland pled guilty to
aggravated fleeing or attempting to elude a peace officer, a Class 4
felony, and domestic battery, a Class A misdemeanor, and faced the
possibility of between 1 and 6 years of imprisonment. In total, Rowland
faced between 6 and 30 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections;
however, for each of these cases, probation was an option.
For the arson and criminal damage to property, Rowland was sentenced to
14 years of imprisonment. For the retail theft, Rowland was sentenced to
3 years of imprisonment, and for the aggravated fleeing or attempting to
elude a peace officer, Rowland was sentenced to 4 years of imprisonment.
Because Rowland was on pretrial release when the offenses were
committed, Rowland must serve each of his sentences consecutively to
each other, meaning that Rowland’s combined sentenced is 21 years.
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According to Illinois law, Rowland must serve at least 50% of the
sentence and be given credit for the time he spent in pretrial
detention. Rowland was also ordered to pay over $2.3 million in
restitution.
Rowland’s criminal history includes: criminal damage to property (a
Class A misdemeanor), forgery (a Class 3 felony), reckless driving
(a Class A misdemeanor), violation of an order of protection (a
Class A misdemeanor), burglary (a Class 2 felony), residential
burglary (a Class 1 felony), possession of a stolen vehicle (a Class
2 felony), theft (a Class 4 felony), retail theft (a Class 4
felony), criminal trespass to residence (a Class A misdemeanor),
domestic battery (a Class A misdemeanor), unlawful possession of
anhydrous ammonia (a Class 1 felony), unlawful manufacturing of
methamphetamine (a Class X felony), and theft (a Class 4 felony).
All the defendant’s prior criminal history occurred outside of Logan
County.
“I am very pleased with the sentences in these cases” said Logan
County State’s Attorney Bradley Hauge. “A strong message was sent
that crimes of this magnitude will not be tolerated. The arson was
completely unnecessary. For reasons known only to the defendant, he
decided to rob the community of a vital business and cause millions
of dollars in losses. The aggravating fleeing and eluding case was
also very dangerous. There is no reason for leading law enforcement
on a high-speed chase through a residential community. The defendant
put innocent lives at risk. This defendant had been given many
chances in his life to change his criminal ways and he did not take
advantage of the opportunities. Based on his history, character, and
attitude, rehabilitation through probation wasn’t a viable option.
This sentence was necessary to ensure the safety of the community
from a dangerous person.”
The following agencies aided in the investigation: Lincoln Fire
Department, Lincoln Rural Fire Protection, Illinois State Fire
Marshal, Lincoln Police Department, and the Logan County Sheriff’s
Office.
[Bradley Hauge
Logan County State's Attorney] |
