USA, Maryland, Baltimore, Inner Harbor, skyline from Federal Hill, sunrise. Credit: Walter Bibikow via Getty Images.
Two suspects in an attempted attack on Baltimore's electric grid have been arrested, according to the U.S. Justice Department. Unsealed court documents show that Sarah Clendaniel of Maryland and Brandon Russell of Florida are racist extremists who allegedly wanted to "completely destroy" Baltimore by shutting down its grid.
He started communicating with an FBI informant about the attack in December soon after being released from prison.
“Together, we are using every legal means necessary to keep Marylanders safe and to disrupt hate-fueled violence,” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron during a press conference on Monday. “When we are united, hate cannot win.”
The arrests come amid a series of attempted attacks on power stations, as well as one successful one in North Carolina that cut power to 45,000 households. So far, no one has been arrested for that attack.
"In the last decade, we have increased our level of investment on grid hardening capital projects, and monitoring and surveillance technologies to work to prevent both physical and cyber-attacks," said Exelon and Baltimore Gas and Electric in a statement. "We remain focused on improving the resiliency of the grid by stocking critical back-up equipment while designing a smarter grid that isolates damage and routes power around it."
In this image taken from video, a cable car carrying six children and two adults dangles hundreds of meters above the ground in the remote Battagram district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan on Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2023. The cable car malfunctioned, trapping the occupants for hours before rescuers arrived in helicopters to try to free them. (AP Photo)
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