A Maryland woman has been sentenced to 18 years in prison for her involvement in a plot to sabotage Baltimore’s electric grid, a plan that prosecutors said could have caused catastrophic damage to the city.
Sarah Beth Clendaniel, who was convicted of conspiracy and felony possession charges, had been working with Brandon Russell, the founder of the neo-Nazi group AtomWaffen, to identify and target power substations in the Baltimore area. According to federal prosecutors, the pair began conspiring in December 2022 and had planned to hit five substations simultaneously, which would have had a devastating impact on the city.
Clendaniel had identified several specific substations in the area, including those in Norrisville, Reisterstown, and Perry Hall, and had told a confidential informant that the attack would “probably permanently completely lay this city to waste.” Prosecutors estimated that if the plot had been successful, it would have caused an estimated $75 million in damage.
As part of the investigation, law enforcement searched Clendaniel’s home and found a cache of firearms and hundreds of rounds of ammunition. Clendaniel, who is a convicted felon, had also requested that the confidential informant obtain a rifle for her to use in the attack.
In court, prosecutors sought a 20-year sentence, but Clendaniel’s defense attorneys argued for leniency, citing her traumatic past and lack of positive influences in her life. “This is someone who simply has not had positive peers in her life,” one of her attorneys, Sedira Banan, told the judge. Despite the request for leniency, Clendaniel was ultimately sentenced to 18 years in prison.
