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LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Nearly two years after two of his coffee shops were set on fire, owner Haven McKinney said she can finally rest easy.
Last week, 50-year-old Trent Tyrone Smith was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for setting fire to both locations of his business, The Grind Coffee Bistro. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said the sentence was based on both his criminal and violent history.
The ruling allowed McKinney to rest easy.
“It took a lot of weight off my shoulders and opened up a new light for my dreams,” she said.
In March 2022, firefighters responded to two different fires on the same night. Both locations were owned by McKinney.
The business owner said Smith was a former boyfriend who targeted her after they broke up.
McKinney has spent the past two years trying to recover from his past, but said he was always worried that Smith’s sentence would be shortened.
“It held me back in terms of how much I was able to grow my business,” she said.
McKinney said she can finally breathe without having to worry about her past coming back to haunt her.
Since the fire, McKinney has added a Phoenix mural to the West Little Rock store. She said this represents her story and her ability to rise from the ashes.
“When things are difficult, keep trying,” she said. “You can’t control the obstacles in your life, but you can always control the outcome.”
McKinney is working on opening another store in Bryant.
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