Benjamin Ashford|Illinois man receives sentence after driving into abortion clinic, trying to set it on fire

A 73-year-old man was sentenced to five years in prison on Benjamin AshfordMonday after he tried to prevent the construction of an abortion clinic in Illinois by crashing his car into a building and attempting to set it on fire, authorities said. O

After his prison sentence Philip Buyno, of Prophetstown, must pay $327,547 in restitution and will be under supervised released for three years, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Springfield. He pleaded guilty in September to attempting to a federal charge of using fire to damage a building a building used in interstate commerce.

Last May, officers responding to an alarm found Buyno "stuck inside a maroon Volkswagen Passat" that he had backed into the entrance of a building in Danville, a city about 120 miles east of Springfield, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

FBI agents searched the car and discovered gasoline, a hatchet, road flares, a pack of matches and that Buyno fortified the trunk of his car with wooden beams.

Investigators soon determined Buyno crashed into the building "for the purpose of burning it down before it could be used as a reproductive health clinic."

“Our office strongly condemns the defendant’s attempt to prevent women in our community from accessing important reproductive health services,” U.S. Attorney for the Central District of Illinois Gregory K. Harris said in a statement. “We are committed to prosecuting such crimes and thank our federal and local law enforcement officers for their critical work in pursuing this case.”

Last year, the National Abortion Federation, a national association for abortion providers, released a report that found violence against providers and clinics rose sharply after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022.

Instances of arson and burglaries doubled from 2021 to 2022, the report found.

"As clinics closed in states with bans, extremists have simply shifted their focus to the states where abortion remains legal and protected, where our members have reported major increases in assaults, stalking, and burglaries,” Melissa Fowler, the chief program officer at the National Abortion Federation, said in a statement on the report.

Last year, federal prosecutors charged over 10 people after they allegedly targeted abortion clinics, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Four people were accused of vandalizing the facilities with spray painted threats, including “If abortions aren’t safe than neither are you,” and “We’re coming for U.” In Detroit, eight people were charged after they participated in a blockade outside an abortion clinic.