Authorities Thwart Attempt to Destroy Tennessee Energy Facility With Explosives

The Nashville, Tenn., skyline as seen from Cumberland River Park on March 29, 2023. Chase Smith/The Epoch Times

Federal agents arrested a 24-year-old Tennessee man on Nov. 2, charging him over attempts to destroy an energy facility in Nashville with a weapon of mass destruction.

The FBI undercover agents uncovered Skyler Philippi’s alleged plan to attack a Nashville power grid and arrested him moments before he strapped explosives onto a drone in Franklin, Tennessee, and deployed them to their intended targets.

“As charged, Skyler Philippi believed he was moments away from launching an attack on a Nashville energy facility to further his violent white supremacist ideology—but the FBI had already compromised his plot,” Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said in a Nov. 4 statement. “This case serves as yet another warning to those seeking to sow violence and chaos in the name of hatred by attacking our country’s critical infrastructure: the Justice Department will find you, we will disrupt your plot, and we will hold you accountable.”

According to the criminal complaint, Philippi began expressing his intentions in June to a confidential human source (CHS), revealing his desire to commit a mass shooting at a YMCA facility near Columbia, Tennessee—his hometown.

By July, he discussed with another CHS the impact of attacking large interstate substations, believing that attacking several would “shock the system” and cause widespread malfunctions.

Philippi allegedly researched previous attacks on electric substations and concluded that using firearms would be insufficient.

He then planned to attach explosives, specifically C-4 and pipe bombs using black powder, to a drone and fly it into a substation.

In September, he conducted reconnaissance of a targeted electric substation with undercover FBI employees, discussing operational security measures such as disguises, avoiding smartphone use, and destroying evidence post-attack.

During this period, Philippi communicated his accelerationist ideology, stating in a text message to a CHS, “If you want to do the most damage as an accelerationist, attack high economic, high tax, political zones in every major metropolis.” Referring to the substation, he said it would explode like a “fourth of July firework.”

On Nov. 2, agents were with Philippi as he participated in a Nordic ritual that included reciting a Nordic prayer and discussing the Norse god Odin.

He told undercover agents, “This is where the New Age begins” and that it was “time to do something big” that would be remembered “in the annals of history.”

Philippi was arrested at the operation site after agents observed him preparing the drone and explosive device. At the time of his arrest, the drone was powered up, and the explosive device was armed and located next to it.

“Driven by a racially motivated extremist ideology, the defendant allegedly planned to attack the power grid with a drone and explosives, leaving thousands of Americans and critical infrastructure like hospitals without power,” FBI Director Christopher Wray said in the release. “The FBI’s swift work led to the detection and disruption of the defendant’s plot before he could cause any damage.”

Philippi is charged with attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction and attempted destruction of an energy facility. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

An attorney for Phillippi was not yet listed in the federal court docketing system to contact on his behalf for comment on the allegations.