Man ‘dedicated to white supremacist ideology’ arrested in alleged plot to attack Nashville energy facility with drone
CNN
A Tennessee man “dedicated to white supremacist ideology” faces federal charges in an alleged plot to blow up a Nashville energy facility, an attack that if successful could have left thousands without power three days before the US presidential election, the US Justice Department said Monday.
A Tennessee man “dedicated to white supremacist ideology” faces federal charges in an alleged plot to blow up a Nashville energy facility, an attack that if successful could have left thousands without power three days before the US presidential election, the US Justice Department said Monday. Skyler Philippi, 24, was arrested Saturday when he “believed he was moments away” from launching a drone armed with explosives at an electric substation in Nashville, according to an agency news release. He’s charged with attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction and attempted destruction of an energy facility. Philippi appeared in court Monday and is due back November 13, court records show. At the government’s request, a federal magistrate has detained him without bond until that hearing. An attorney for Philippi told CNN Tuesday he couldn’t comment. Philippi’s plan was an attempt “to further his white supremacist ideology –– but the FBI had already compromised his plot,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in the news release. “This case serves as yet another warning to those seeking to sow violence and chaos in the name of hatred by attacking our country’s critical infrastructure: the Justice Department will find you, we will disrupt your plot, and we will hold you accountable,” Garland added. America’s electrical sector has been on alert after a flurry of physical attacks and vandalism on its infrastructure in 2022. Some threats came from people espousing racially or ethnically motivated extremist ideology “to create civil disorder and inspire further violence,” the FBI said even before threats grew more acute.
