A fire outside a Wisconsin congressman’s office was extinguished without incident Sunday but the man suspected of starting the blaze says he was motivated by the United States’ ban on TikTok.
The 19-year-old man from nearby Menasha, whom was not immediately identified by authorities, told police he was targeting the Fond du Lac office of Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-Wis.), who voted in favor of a federal ban in April.
The man allegedly started the fire outside of the strip mall shortly after midnight Sunday, when the building was unoccupied. No one was injured in the incident and only minor damage to the strip mall was reported.
The man was arrested after he was observed near the mall watching the fire. He was still in custody Sunday and will be charged with arson, police said.
The Chinese-owned TikTok had until Sunday to sell the popular video-sharing app. Owner ByteDance took down the app briefly Sunday but said it decided to return the app “as a result of President Trump’s efforts” to stop the ban.
Trump, who takes office Monday, has vowed to try to find an alternative to the ban.
