Two men sentenced for setting inmate on fire in Ottawa County jail
TULSA, Okla. –Two Ottawa County men were sentenced to five years for setting a sleeping inmate on fire.
Justin Randall Gering, 30, of Fairland, and Tyler Levi Tavis, 23, of Miami were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gregory Frizzell for arson of property of an institution and organization receiving federal financial assistance.
Frizzell also ordered a year of supervised release for each man.
Tavis and Gering were in Ottawa County Jail in Dec. 2022. They were caught on video surveillance wrapping a sleeping inmate in toilet paper and setting it on fire. The sleeping inmate was covered by a county-issued fire-retardant blanket, which kept him from being severely burned. Other inmates at the jail responded quickly to put the fire out, keeping it from spreading further within the jail.
Gering and Tavis will remain in custody pending transfer to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.
