Dara S. O’Connor
Introduction
Dara S. O’Connor, a 30-year-old Kansas City, Missouri, woman, was sentenced before U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to 24 months in federal prison, followed by two years of supervised release, for possessing two unregistered destructive devices. The Court also ordered O’Connor to pay $43,612 for damages her use of the devices caused when she set fire to a warehouse on Botts Road in Kansas City on February 12, 2026. She pleaded guilty to the possession count on May 7, 2026.
Background Information
The warehouse O’Connor targeted on Botts Road carried a loaded political backdrop. Prior media reporting had indicated the federal government attempted to purchase the warehouse, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement wanted to utilize the real estate to house illegal aliens during the adjudication of their removal proceedings. That real estate transaction, however, did not occur. According to the release, news agencies were at the scene of the warehouse reporting that the transaction did not go through when they observed and recorded O’Connor approaching the building.
The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation
Convicted and sentenced.
On February 12, 2026, O’Connor attempted to destroy by fire a warehouse located on Botts Road in Kansas City. News agencies at the scene, covering the collapse of the planned federal purchase of the property, observed and recorded her as she approached the building. O’Connor threw two incendiary devices, colloquially known as Molotov cocktails, at the building. The devices had cloth wicks that were not lit when she threw them. After multiple attempts at throwing the incendiary devices at the building, both bottles shattered, and the flammable liquid contained in the devices spread over the surface of the building.
O’Connor then used fire to ignite the flammable liquid on the building, which started a fire, and she attempted to spread it by squeezing a bottle that contained an accelerant, causing the accelerant to spray out of the bottle and spread the flames further. After initiating the fire, O’Connor sat on a nearby curb and was observed using her cellular phone for a few minutes. The fire went out after a few minutes, and O’Connor then left the area in her vehicle. The episode, captured on camera by news crews at the scene, left behind $43,612 in damage to the building and its owner.
On May 7, 2026, O’Connor pleaded guilty to one count of knowingly possessing two destructive devices that were not registered in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record. She was sentenced before U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to 24 months imprisonment followed by two years of supervised release, and the Court ordered her to pay $43,612 for damages incurred by a victim as a result of O’Connor utilizing the destructive devices to set fire to the warehouse.
Public Reaction and Consequences
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Trey Alford and David Wagner and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon Chlarson. Pursuant to the plea agreement, O’Connor paid full restitution in the amount of $43,612 to the victim of her crime. The prosecution is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and protect communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. The sentence pairs the prison term with two years of supervised release and the completed restitution payment.
Current Status
O’Connor’s case is resolved through plea and sentence. She pleaded guilty on May 7, 2026, to one count of knowingly possessing two unregistered destructive devices, and was sentenced in federal court, with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri announcing the outcome on October 28, 2026. The judgment imposes 24 months of imprisonment, two years of supervised release, and $43,612 in restitution, which she has already paid in full under the plea agreement. The release describes no additional charges related to the fire itself and no pending matters, leaving the sentence, the supervision term, and the recorded damage to the warehouse as the standing facts of the case.
Impact on Their Career/Life
O’Connor, 30, now carries a federal felony conviction for knowingly possessing two unregistered destructive devices, along with a 24-month prison term and two years of supervised release. The fire she set burned only a few minutes before going out, but it still produced $43,612 in damage, an amount she has repaid in full under her plea agreement. The backdrop, an ICE-linked warehouse purchase that fell through before the attack, remains part of the public record of the case. The release describes no other professional or personal details about her.
Sources
- U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri, “Kansas City Woman Receives 24 Months Over Destructive Devices Linked to Planned ICE Warehouse Fire”, October 28, 2026 — source