MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — Two brothers from Faribault, Minn., who pleaded guilty to setting a fire that destroyed a railroad bridge in Plymouth have been sued for $1.2 million, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports.
The Union Pacific Railroad filed the suit Tuesday in Hennepin County District Court.
Matthew P. Dorweiler and Nathan N. Dorweiler were ordered to pay the railroad $1.2 million in restitution when they were sentenced in federal court for arson in November. The lawsuit did not mention the restitution order.
The suit also names the brothers’ parents, Robert and Betty Lou Dorweiler. It alleges that they knew of prior actions by their sons that were similar to the incident on April 8, 2000, in which the bridge was destroyed.
Since Matthew and Nathan Dorweiler lived with their parents, the parents should have warned and protected the public against the danger and damage caused by the fires, the suit said.
It alleged that Matthew and Nathan Dorweiler are suspects in nearly 60 fires.
They pleaded guilty in August 2001 to setting five fires within four days in April 2000, including the one that burned about 25 acres and destroyed the railroad bridge in Plymouth.
Matthew, 22, was sentenced to two years in federal prison. Nathan, 27, was sentenced to two years and 10 months.