A 24-year-old man from Tennessee is facing federal charges for allegedly planning to blow up an energy facility in Nashville, which could have resulted in widespread power outages affecting thousands of people, the Justice Department revealed on Monday.
The suspect, identified as Skyler Philippi, was apprehended on November 2 just moments before he intended to launch a drone armed with explosives at an electric substation in the Nashville area, according to a press release from the DOJ. Philippi has been charged with attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction and attempted destruction of an energy facility.
Attorney General Merrick Garland stated that Philippi's plan was driven by his white supremacist ideology, but the FBI was able to thwart the plot before it could be carried out.
According to a criminal complaint filed in US District Court, Philippi had initially discussed a mass shooting at a YMCA facility in Columbia, Tennessee, before introducing the idea of targeting the energy facility to another individual in July.
The complaint further alleges that Philippi was motivated by an 'accelerationist ideology,' a white supremacist belief advocating for the collapse of the existing societal system through destructive actions.
In September, Philippi, accompanied by undercover FBI agents posing as accomplices, conducted reconnaissance of the substation and ordered explosive materials from the agents. On November 2, as Philippi was preparing to carry out the attack, law enforcement agents intervened and arrested him at the scene.
Philippi is scheduled to appear in federal court on November 13 to face the charges brought against him.
