A Michigan truck driver has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for setting fire to trailers owned by Swift Transportation across multiple states. Viorel Pricop, 66, received his sentence this June from a federal judge in California, who also ordered him to pay nearly $650,000 in restitution.

The fires began after Pricop served a sentence for federal charges related to the theft of Swift´s cargo.

The prosecution described Pricop´s actions as a "nationwide campaign of revenge" U.S. Attorney Martín Estrada stated that Pricop´s acts endangered lives by setting fire to trailers while drivers were sleeping in the cab.

The meticulous investigation, conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), identified Pricop using cell tower data and fleet management devices. Agents tracked and monitored Pricop, linking him to 22 of the 23 fires until March 2022. In Pricop´s truck cab, agents found rags smelling of flammable liquid, a gas torch, lighters, and flammable liquid. Pricop denied involvement in the fires but admitted that he considered Swift a "bad company" and too large to be harmed.

Pricop´s current sentence covers only six fires in California, while additional charges in Arizona and New Mexico remain pending in federal courts.