Three men pleaded guilty on Wednesday for their roles in conspiring to attack U.S. power grids, as part of a plot motivated by white supremacy to sow civil unrest and economic distress, the U.S. Justice Department said. Christopher Cook, 20, of Columbus, Ohio; Jonathan Frost, 24, of Katy, Texas and of West Lafayette, Indiana; and Jackson Sawall, 22, of Oshkosh, Wisconsin each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to provide material support to extremists, court documents filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio showed. The case comes at a time when Justice Department officials have pointed to an increase in domestic threats stemming from white supremacists and anti-government militias. In January, the department announced the formation of a new domestic terrorism unit, amid a growing realization that extremists within the country represent a threat on par with that posed by foreign militant groups such as Islamic State. The defendants, whose representatives could not immediately be reached for comment, face a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison. Prosecutors say that in the fall of 2019, Frost and Cook hatched their plans in an online chat group, with Frost concocting the idea of attacking a power grid. Within weeks, the two began efforts to recruit others to join in their plan, and Sawall later joined the conspiracy, the prosecutors say.
via reuters: Three men plead guilty to planning U.S. power grid attack, driven by white supremacy
siehe auch: Three Men Plead Guilty to Conspiring to Provide Material Support to a Plot to Attack Power Grids in the United States. Domestic Terrorism Plot was in Furtherance of White Supremacist Ideology. Three men pleaded guilty today to crimes related to a scheme to attack power grids in the United States in furtherance of white supremacist ideology. According to court documents, Christopher Brenner Cook, 20, of Columbus, Ohio; Jonathan Allen Frost, 24, of West Lafayette, Indiana, and of Katy, Texas; and Jackson Matthew Sawall, 22, of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to provide material support to terrorists. The charge and plea agreements indicate that the defendants knew and intended that the material support they conspired to provide would be used to prepare for and carry out the federal offense of destroying energy facilities.
“These three defendants admitted to engaging in a disturbing plot, in furtherance of white supremacist ideology, to attack energy facilities in order to damage the economy and stoke division in our country,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security Matthew G. Olsen. “The Justice Department is committed to investigating and disrupting such terrorist plots and holding perpetrators accountable for their crimes.” “These defendants conspired to use violence to sow hate, create chaos, and endanger the safety of the American people,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth L. Parker for the Southern District of Ohio. “As this case shows, federal and state law enforcement agencies are dedicated to working together to protect this country against all enemies, foreign and domestic.”; White Supremacists Plotted Power Grid Attacks to Start a Race War, Feds Say. Three men hailing from Ohio, Texas, and Indiana planned to bring down power grids across the country in hopes of causing prolonged civil unrest, prosecutors said. Three white supremacists have pleaded guilty to a plot to spark a national race war by attacking power grids throughout the United States, the feds announced Wednesday.