Duo arrested for sabotage of power substations in Christmas attack

Tacoma, Washington - Two men from Washington state were arrested for allegedly sabotaging four power substations on Christmas, causing massive outages and millions in damages.

Two Washington state men are facing conspiracy charges after they allegedly sabotaged four power stations on Christmas day, causing outages and damages.
Two Washington state men are facing conspiracy charges after they allegedly sabotaged four power stations on Christmas day, causing outages and damages.  © Collage: US Department of Justice

This is a twosome who made Christmas go dark for thousands.

Matthew Greenwood (32) and Jeremy Crahan (40) have both been charged with conspiracy to damage energy facilities, according to an unsealed criminal complaint filed with the District Court for the Western District of Washington.

The scheme is punishable with up to 20 years in prison.

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Greenwood also faces a charge of possession of unregistered firearms, for which he faces up to 10 years in prison.

The duo allegedly attacked two Tacoma Power and two Puget Sound Energy substations on Christmas day, causing power outages for more than15,500 customers and more than $3 million in damages.

Both were arrested on New Year's Eve after an analysis of cell phone records by the FBI traced them to the scene of the crime on the day of the attacks.

ABC News reported that the FBI then put them under "essentially continuous surveillance" leading up to their arrest.

But how and why did the two carry out the plan?

How did the men in Washington state supposedly sabotage power substations?

A map of the four substations hit in the attacks that took place in Washington state on Christmas Day.
A map of the four substations hit in the attacks that took place in Washington state on Christmas Day.  © US Department of Justice

How did this duo get connected to the series of events?

Surveillance video taken at the Tacoma facility apparently caught an image of Crahan's 1999 Dodge pickup truck and a masked suspect. Greenwood was eventually arrested wearing clothing that matched that of the suspect in the footage.

He admitted to the FBI that he entered the facilities using bolt cutters, while his accomplice Crahan acted as a getaway driver. Greenwood also revealed that they intended to cut power to the area so they could rob a local business.

Both men have extensive criminal records. Law enforcement will also continue their investigation to see if there is a link to other substation attacks recorded in Washington and Oregon within recent months.

Cover photo: Collage: US Department of Justice

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