Man planned to use drone to attack substation
A Tennessee man had planned to use a drone carrying an explosive to destroy a Nashville substation.
Image for illustration purposes.
USA, Tennessee: A 24-year-old Tennessee man was arrested on Saturday as he had planned to use a drone carrying an explosive to destroy a Nashville substation to further his “violent white supremacist ideology,” federal prosecutors said.
Skyler Philippi of Columbia, TN, had plotted the attack to push an ideology called “accelerationism,” which calls for the complete collapse of American society, according to a criminal complaint prepared by the FBI. Christopher Wray, the FBI director, said that the attack would have left thousands in the area without power, including hospitals, but the FBI’s work led to the detection and disruption of the plot before any damage could be caused.
Mr. Philippi was charged with attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempting to destroy an energy facility and if convicted on all charges, he could face life in prison. The FBI had been watching him since June and learned from a confidential source that he was planning to commit an act of mass violence. A month later he discussed plans to attack large electric substations with another confidential source. According to prosecutors, when the authorities arrested him on Saturday, Mr. Philippi was preparing to attach an explosive to a drone near the substation.
The NY Times reports that there has been a surge in plots to attack the grid from far-right extremist groups. A 2022 study from George Washington University found that such plots to attack the energy sector “dramatically increased in frequency” from 2016 to 2022.
Source: The New York Times
