Police informant looking at 8-10 years imprisonment

Feds acknowledge Mich. arsonist was key informant
10/10/2008, 3:31 p.m. ET
By ED WHITE
The Associated Press


DETROIT (AP) — For the first time, the government is publicly
acknowledging the wide-ranging undercover role of a Detroit man who
committed arson at Michigan State University and cooperated in an
investigation of eco-terrorism.

Federal prosecutors in Grand Rapids are recommending that Frank Ambrose be
sentenced to eight to 10 years in prison, well below the maximum, 20
years, later this month.

In a document filed Friday, prosecutors say Ambrose traveled across the
country with a secret recording device, gathering intelligence against
members of the Earth Liberation Front.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Hagen Frank calls the cooperation "nothing short
of remarkable."

The 33-year-old Ambrose committed arson at MSU on New Year's Eve 1999 to
protest genetically modified crops. The damage exceeded $1 million.