A Baltimore County woman accused of conspiring with a neo-Nazi leader to attack and destroy energy substations around the Baltimore area is scheduled to appear in court on a new charge in May.
U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar scheduled a re-arraignment date for Sarah Beth Clendaniel, of Catonsville, for May 13 in U.S. District Court. Prosecutors filed a new charge against Clendaniel on Tuesday, accusing her of possession of a firearm even though she was prohibited from doing so.
The gun charge was filed in a bill of information, meaning prosecutors did not bring it before a grand jury. A bill of information often is an indication that a plea agreement has been reached with prosecutors.
Clendaniel is charged with conspiring with Brandon Russell, a neo-Nazi leader who formed the violent group Atomwaffen Division, to attack and destroy energy substations around the Baltimore area to “lay [the] city to waste.”
Clendaniel was recorded telling an FBI source that she wanted to shoot at and destroy energy substations that ring the Baltimore area, including in Reisterstown, according to court documents.
The man she is accused of conspiring with, Brandon Clint Russell, of Orlando, the founder of the neo-Nazi group Atomwaffen Division, described how a small number of attacks on energy substations would create a “cascading failure,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
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At the time of the indictment, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Baltimore field office, Thomas J. Sobocinski said Clendaniel and Russell “were not just talking but taking steps to fulfill their threats and further their extremist goals.”
The attack against Baltimore would have joined a string of attacks against energy infrastructure between 2022 and 2023 that left tens of thousands of people across the country without electricity.
Atomwaffen Division subscribes to a neo-Nazi ideology called accelerationism — which aims to cause society’s collapse through violent acts.
A trial for Clendaniel and Russell is scheduled to begin in U.S. District Court on July 8.
This is a developing story.
Baltimore Banner reporters Justin Fenton and Brenna Smith contributed to this story.
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Cody Boteler is a reporter on The Banner’s Express Desk, reporting on breaking news, trending stories and interesting things in and around Baltimore. His work has appeared in The Baltimore Sun, USA TODAY, Baltimore magazine and others.
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