John W. Burns, 42, of Buffalo pleaded guilty July 20, 2026 to arson for starting a June 17, 2024 fire that destroyed The Old Pink, a restaurant and bar at 223 Allen Street, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York announced.
The charge, arson of a building used in interstate commerce, carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Burns entered his plea before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara; sentencing is set for Oct. 27, 2026.
According to the federal release, Buffalo Fire Department investigators determined the June 17 blaze was deliberately set and recovered a blue propane plumbers torch near the building’s rear. Security footage showed a person near the fire origin carrying two white garbage bags and later walking away before flames became visible. Investigators later linked Burns to a confrontation at The Old Pink earlier that evening in which he allegedly threatened to burn the business down.
Prosecutors say witnesses and video evidence identified Burns as the person seen leaving the rear of The Old Pink shortly after the fire began. Law enforcement also obtained text messages from an associate that included the statements “Guerrilla mode on” and “Guerrilla BuffL9 is a go,” the release says. The release quotes Burns as telling a security guard during an earlier confrontation: “I’ll be back… I’ll burn that… ain’t nobody going to have a job.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office also linked Burns to a separate early-morning incident on Aug. 13, 2024, when video shows a person — identified as Burns by the pub owner — setting a pile of books on fire in the parking lot of the Essex St. Pub. That small fire was extinguished by fire department members; fire marshals concluded the books were the point of origin.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard P. Antoine and was investigated by the ATF, Erie County District Attorney’s Office, Buffalo Fire Department (Buffalo Fire Marshal’s Office) and Buffalo Police Department, the release states.
This article is based on a July 20, 2026 press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York.
