Man arrested for alleged neo-Nazi-inspired plot to destroy Nashville’s energy supply: DOJ

A 24-year-old Tennessee man has been arrested and charged with allegedly conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction in a neo-Nazi-inspired plot to destroy a power plant near Nashville, the Justice Department announced Monday.

Skyler Philippi reportedly planned to attack Nashville’s power grid with a drone armed with explosives, after conducting extensive research into how such an attack could serve to “shock the system,” as he reportedly relayed to a confidential FBI source who became aware of his plans, prosecutors. said.

The FBI first began investigating Philippi in June after a confidential source who had contact with him reported to the FBI that he wanted to commit a mass shooting at a YMCA near Columbia, Tennessee, the complaint said.

Philippi is alleged to have repeatedly advocated white supremacist and accelerationist ideologies that promote the idea that a destabilizing terrorist attack on something like the country’s energy sector could serve to foment unrest leading to civil war, prosecutors said.

“I definitely want to hit Nashville, one hundred percent, I want to hit Nashville,” Philippi allegedly said during a meeting recorded by the undercover officers, according to the complaint. “I also know Louisville quite well, since I lived there. I spent about five months exploring every single place (power station) and even coming up with a game plan to get there as quickly as possible. I had entire maps made , printed on paper, to actually do that.”

In September, Philippi and undercover FBI employees drove to an electrical substation he had previously investigated and while en route, Philippi allegedly ordered from the informants what he said would be the equivalent of C-4 explosives, according to the complaint.

During the reconnaissance mission, the undercover agents recorded Philippi saying, “Holy s—. This is going to go up like a f—–‘ Fourth of July fireworks,” according to the complaint.

According to the complaint, Philippi allegedly met with the undercover agents on Saturday to test the drone and carry out the attack. The complaint includes a photo that prosecutors said shows Philippi conducting the drone’s test flight.

The officers provided Philippi with pipe bombs that were allegedly ordered by the defendant and contained an inert substance so they would not explode, the complaint said. Another photo in the complaint shows a masked person who prosecutors say is Philippi along with two undercover FBI agents, showing the pipe bombs and an explosive device.

Before going to the site of the operation, Philippi took part in a ‘Nordic ritual’ where he reportedly said: ‘This is where the new era begins’ and that it was ‘time to do something big’ that would be remembered will be ‘in the future’. annals of history,” the complaint said.

Once at the scene of the operation, as the undercover officers moved to their assigned positions as lookouts, Philippi allegedly powered the drone with an explosive device that he believed had an active C-4 attached to it, the complaint said. He was then taken into custody, prosecutors said.

“As the indictment read, Skyler Philippi believed he was moments away from launching an attack on a Nashville power plant to further his violent white supremacist ideology – but the FBI had already compromised his plot,” said Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement. “This case serves as yet another warning to those who seek to sow violence and chaos in the name of hate by attacking our nation’s critical infrastructure: the Department of Justice will find you, we will disrupt your plot, and we will hold you accountable shout.”

Philippi is charged with attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction and attempted destruction of an energy supply. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, the DOJ said.

He had an initial court appearance Monday and was temporarily detained, court records show. A preliminary and detention hearing has been continued until November 13.

ABC News has reached out to Philippi’s attorney for comment.