White supremacy knows no bounds and white supremacist groups should be treated just like al-Qaeda or the Taliban, like terrorist organizations dedicated to hatred and harm.
Back in February 2023, BOSSIP reported on a pair of individuals who subscribed to such notions and who conspired to commit a crime that would have a devastating effect on millions of people. Fortunately, white supremacists are some of the stupidest people walking the planet. A Maryland woman named Sarah Beth Clendaniel and a Florida man named Brandon Russell were a member and founder, respectively, of a far-right Neo-Nazi group called “Atomwaffen Division.” Clendaniel’s loose lips got them caught up when she told an FBI informant that they planned on using firearms to shoot up energy substations Maryland: in Norrisville, Reisterstown, Perry Hall, and Baltimore City. This would effectively blackout major parts of Maryland and bring daily operations to a halt.
Recently, justice.gov confirms that the United States Attorney General’s Office for the state of Maryland announced that Russell has been sentenced to serve 20 years in federal prison for his part in the crippling conspiracy plot. U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, Kelly O. Hayes, released a public statement regarding the sentencing.
“Russell allowed hatred to drive him and his co-conspirator to plot a dangerous scheme that could have harmed thousands of people,” Hayes said. “The sentence imposed today reflects the gravity of Russell’s egregious conduct and his ongoing threat to public safety. This conviction underscores our unwavering commitment to dismantling violent extremist threats and holding accountable anyone who dares to conspire to endanger the lives of others.”
Russell’s presiding judge, U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar, previously sentenced can’t-keep-quiet Clendaniel to 18 years in federal prison for her part in the attack plan. According to CBS News, Judge Bredar described Russell as “profoundly dangerous” and stated that the 30-year-old planned to forge a “bizarre utopia…where everyone looked like him.”
