Martinez admitted to police that he lit the banner on fire with lighter fluid and a lighter after stealing it from the church, according to court documents. Police said he stole a pride banner hanging at Ames United Church of Christ, 217 6th St., and burned it early June 11 outside Dangerous Curves Gentleman’s Club, 111 5th St. Iowa man sentenced to 16 years for setting LGBTQ flag on fireĪn Ames man was sentenced Wednesday to about 16 years in prison after he set fire to a church LGBTQ flag in June.Īdolfo Martinez, 30, of Ames, last month was found guilty of a hate crime - a class 'D' felony - third-degree harassment and reckless use of fire. It would seem there must be more to the story but I've looked at threes sources and not seeing that. I hate posting this but it's hard to ignore.
