MISSOURI
Thirty-two-year-old Jedediah Stout, of Joplin, Missouri, plead guilty in federal court today to the arson of a Joplin mosque and two attempted arsons of a Planned Parenthood clinic in Joplin, officials announced today.
Stout plead guilty to a four-count information that charges him with one count of damage to the Islamic Society of Joplin mosque, two counts of arson at a Planned Parenthood facility in Joplin and one count of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act. He remains in federal custody without bond.
Stout, who told investigators that he did not like Islam as a religion, pleaded guilty to setting a fire that destroyed the Islamic Society of Joplin mosque on Aug. 6, 2012.
Under federal statutes, Stout is facing up to 61 years in federal prison without parole.
Details surrounding the incidents and Stout’s arrest can be obtained by clicking here: Plea Agreement.
The mosque served families from neighboring states, many of whom provided funding for the operation of the mosque. As a direct result of the fire, many donations made during the Muslim holy period of Ramadan were destroyed.
Stout admitted that he committed the mosque arson using the same kind of incendiary device he later used in two Planned Parenthood arson attempts.
On Oct. 3 and Oct. 4, 2013, Stout was captured on surveillance cameras as he made consecutive attempts to set fire to the Planned Parenthood facility in Joplin.
In both instances, he threw items containing an accelerant onto the roof of the facility and then ignited material attached to the accelerant. Stout was apprehended soon after the Planned Parenthood arson attempts.
He admitted to investigators that he was responsible for both Planned Parenthood arson attempts and for the mosque arson.
Stout further admitted that he targeted Planned Parenthood because they provide reproductive health care services.
“In pleading guilty, Stout admitted that he attempted to burn the Planned Parenthood because it provides reproductive health services, and that he set fire to the Islamic Society of Joplin mosque because of its religious character,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta. “The Justice Department will continue to vigorously prosecute violence against reproductive health services providers and crimes motivated by religious animus.”
“I am committed to protecting and preserving the Constitutional rights of all Americans,” said U.S. Attorney Tammy Dickinson. “The Islamic Society of Joplin and Planned Parenthood were direct victims of these acts of arson, along with those whom they serve. But our entire community is impacted by hate crimes that strike at the heart of the principles by which we all live in a democracy. We will not tolerate the use of violence by anyone who threatens others in the free exercise of their religious and civil rights.”
Under federal law, Stout is facing up to 61 years in federal prison without parole.
The FBI; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Missouri State Highway Patrol; and the Joplin Police Department investigated this case.