Aurora man sentenced for throwing explosive into Naperville restaurant

CHICAGO (AP) — A man was sentenced to five years in prison for throwing an explosive device through the window of a suburban Chicago restaurant in 2020 during civil unrest and riots that followed George Floyd's death in Minneapolis police custody, prosecutors said.

A federal judge in Chicago sentenced Diego Vargas, 27, of Aurora last week. He had faced up to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty last year to throwing an explosive device through the window of the Egg Harbor Cafe in Naperville on June 1, 2020, resulting in two explosions.

The restaurant was closed at the time and no injuries were reported, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago said in a news release announcing Vargas' sentencing.

Vargas attacked the restaurant during civil unrest and riots that followed a peaceful protest in Naperville against racial injustice in the wake of the death of George Floyd, the black man killed by a white Minneapolis police officer in May 2020.

Vargas was also accused of causing up to $10,000 in vandalism damage at several businesses in downtown Naperville the same night the restaurant was attacked.

But those charges were quashed following his sentencing in the federal case, according to DuPage County court records, The (Arlington Heights) Daily Herald reported.

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