According to the US Department of Justice, an Alliance man was arrested Friday morning and charged with one count of malicious use of explosive materials and one count of possessing a destructive device.

Aimenn D. Penny, 20, is charged with using Molotov cocktails against the Community Church of Chesterland (CCC), Chesterland, Ohio, in Geauga County on March 25.

According the the church's facebook posts, the attack on the building took place in advance of drag show at the facility set for Saturday.

“As alleged in the charging documents, the defendant used an explosive device to cause harm to a church he found objectionable,” Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division said.

The FBI Cleveland Joint Terrorism Task Force, alongside the Chester Township Police Department, investigated the incident against the Community Church of
Chesterland.

If convicted of the charges, Penny faces a mandatory minimum of five years and up to 20 years in prison for the malicious use of explosive materials charge and up to 10 years for possessing a destructive device charge.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Deckert for the Northern District of Ohio and Trial Attorneys Jacob Warren and Justin Sher of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section are prosecuting the case.