Teen sets congressman’s office on fire over TikTok ban

A 19-year-old Wisconsin man was arrested early Sunday morning for first entering an office occupied by a member of Congress in Fond du Lac. The unnamed man reportedly told police he was upset by TikTok’s ban, which has barred users from opening the app since late Saturday, but came back online on Sunday following President-elect Donald Trump’s promises not to enforce the ban.

Police responded to a building fire at 525 N. Peters Avenue in Fond du Lac around 1:00 a.m. morning local time on Sunday, according to the local news station WMTV. The office is occupied by U.S. Rep. Glenn Grotman, a Republican who represents Wisconsin’s 6th District and voted in favor of the TikTok “ban or forfeit” bill, which had overwhelming bipartisan support.

There were no people in the building when the fire started and no injuries were reported. First responders were able to keep the fire under control with fire extinguishers until firefighters arrived, according to a local news bulletin Channel 3000. Judging by the photo released by Rep. Grotman’s office that went viral on social media, it appears the fire blackened the outside of the door and damaged an air conditioner, as you can see above.

The 19-year-old arson suspect is from Menasha, according to ABC affiliate WISN, which reports that he “admitted to starting the fire in response to recent talk of banning TikTok.” That man has not yet been identified, but is being held on arson charges at the Fond du Lac County Jail.

“Acts of violence in any form are not tolerated and we remain committed to protecting the safety and well-being of our community.” I am grateful for the quick response of our officers who helped put out the fire and also locate the suspect in this arson,” Fond du Lac Police Chief Aaron Goldstein said in a statement to the local news station WISN.

Congressman Grotman has not made a statement on his social media platforms as X, YouTube, Facebookand Instagram but told the local paper FDL Reporter that he is not sure exactly what happened.

“I don’t even know (what happened) yet, other than someone tried to set fire to TikTok,” said Grotman, who, unlike some members of Congress, appears never to have had a TikTok account.

The TikTok app went dark for US users on Saturday night but was back online Sunday afternoon ET after President-elect Donald Trump said he would sign an executive order Monday after it opened at noon that would postpone the ban. Strangely, Trump has signaled that he wants the US federal government to own 50% of the app, though it’s unclear how that would work.