Inset: Joshua McGregor (Chatham County Jail). Background: Savannah, Georgia, McDonald’s where he set dumpster on fire (Google Maps)
Would you like some fries with your dumpster fire?
A 34-year-old McDonald’s employee will spend the next five years in prison after he pleaded guilty to setting fire to a dumpster outside the fast food joint, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Joshua Daryl McGregor in April 2023 allegedly was frustrated because the Savannah, Georgia, McDonald’s where he worked was busy. So he lit a piece of cardboard on fire and threw it in the large trash bin with more cardboard and other flammable materials.
The fire became so intense that customers had to flee the drive-thru, prosecutors said. The business was closed for a short time while the Savannah Fire Department put out the blaze.
Surveillance video showed him in the act. He even stayed a beat to make sure the fire was cooking and took a video with his cell phone. In other words, he was caught more red-handed then the Hamburglar. Thankfully, there were no reported injuries.
The Savannah Police Department arrested McGregor and in May he pleaded guilty to arson in U.S. District Court.
“Intentionally setting a fire in an effort to shut down or damage someone else’s property is inexcusable,” Jill E. Steinberg, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia, said in a statement. “Joshua McGregor will have substantial time to ponder his post-prison employment options.”
Court records show McGregor’s attorneys were considering an insanity defense before the plea and the court had “reservations about his mental competency.” McGregor was set to have a mental evaluation before he made the plea deal.
“Arson is an extremely violent crime that not only destroys property but also places firefighters, first responders and the general public at great risk,” Beau Kolodka, Assistant Special Agent in Charge for the ATF Atlanta Field Division, said in a statement.
In addition to the prison sentence, McGregor must also pay over $1,000 in restitution.
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