Columbia man sentenced to 5 years in federal prison for arson at Planned Parenthood
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)
Editor's note: This story has been corrected to reflect Kaster's sentence of five years in federal prison. A source erroneously reported his sentence was six years.
A Columbia man was sentenced to five years in federal prison on Wednesday after he pleaded guilty to setting a fire at a local clinic operated by Planned Parenthood Great Plains.
A news release sent from the office of the US Attorney for the Western District of Missouri said a federal judge sentenced Wesley Brian Kaster to five years in prison without parole.
In November 2019, Kaster pleaded guilty to a count each of maliciously using explosive materials to damage a building owned by an organization that receives federal financial assistance and violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act.
Federal prosecutors recommended five years in prison and three years of probation for Kaster.
Kaster admitted to making a molotov cocktail and throwing it into the Planned Parenthood on N. Providence Road in Columbia.
Wednesday's sentencing hearing was pushed back from an original date set for July.
Kaster has been held in federal custody since March 2, 2019. He originally pleaded not guilty in the case.
