Fairfax Co. Man Sentenced For Using Homemade Napalm To Set Fire To Car Near U.S. Capital

WASHINGTON, DC — A Fairfax County man arrested by U.S. Capitol Police on Jan. 8 after he tried to set his car on fire with what authorities described as homemade napalm along First Street NW, near the Grant Memorial, has been sentenced.

Adrian J. Hinton, 36, of Lorton, was sentenced Friday to one year of supervised release, plus 125 hours of community service, for setting his car ablaze with “napalm,” according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Columbia.

The day of the incident, the late President Jimmy Carter's body lay in state at the Capitol Rotunda and numerous elected officials were visiting the Capitol Rotunda, authorities noted.

Hinton pleaded guilty on Jan. 31 to a charge of destruction of government property.

According to court documents, on Jan. 8, Hinton drove his vehicle from Virginia into Washington, D.C., arriving shortly before 5 p.m. Hinton parked on First Street NW near the memorial. Several minutes later, he spread an unknown liquid on the top of the vehicle and ignited it.

Bystanders reported the burning car to the U.S. Capitol Police. Along with USCP officers, agents responded from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Explosives.

Officers found no explosives or accelerants in the vehicle but found matches, a bottle, and a knife adjacent to the vehicle.

Hinton told agents he had developed a plan to set his vehicle on fire near the U.S. Capitol to draw attention to his displeasure with the recent election results. Hinton said he had researched how to make homemade napalm with a mixture of household fluids.

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