The girlfriend of a far-right figurehead whose online chat allegedly made a nod to Hitler will spend nearly two decades behind bars after plotting to “completely destroy” black areas in the city of Baltimore.
Sarah Beth Clendaniel, 36, pleaded guilty to one charge of conspiracy to damage a power facility and one charge of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.
Clendaniel, who was given a maximum prison sentence of 35 years, will spend 18 years behind bars.
It comes as the 36-year-old from Maryland and her partner Brandon Clint Russell, 28, from Florida, were charged in February last year over plans to target the city’s energy grid, with the plot allegedly sparked by ‘racial behavior’. or ethnically motivated violent extremist beliefs.”
Images of the Maryland woman show her dressed in full tactical gear with swastika insignia, while Russell is reportedly a known neo-Nazi figure. Authorities said the couple had a documented “both in-person and online relationship.”
Sarah Beth Clendaniel will spend 18 years behind bars after plotting to ‘completely destroy’ Baltimore
Sarah Beth Clendaniel, pictured, is dressed in full tactical gear with swastika insignia and holding a rifle
Clendaniel and her partner Brandon Clint Russell planned to attack the city’s energy grid, with the attack believed to stem from “racially or ethnically motivated violent extremist beliefs”
According to Law and crimeCourt documents revealed how Clendaniel and her boyfriend planned their attacks on several substations in Baltimore, which has a large black population, through online chat. In those chats, Clendaniel’s username was ‘Nythra88’.
The number is used as a code by the far right because the ‘H’ is the eighth letter of the alphabet, meaning 88 becomes ‘HH’, which stands for ‘Heil Hitler’, synonymous with the Nazi salute.
Clendaniel’s plan was discovered after she was recorded by an FBI informant who revealed the plot to destroy five substations in the city, according to an affidavit filed by an FBI agent.
She revealed that if she and Russell hit all their targets on the same day, they believed their plot would “destroy this entire city” and that “a good four or five shots through the middle of them” was all that was needed.
She further added that the attack would “probably completely destroy this city forever if we could do that successfully.”
During their investigation, the FBI obtained a manifesto written by Clendaniel about the extremist plot, in which she allegedly references infamous figures including Hitler and Unabomber Ted Kaczynski.
Erek L. Barron, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, said in a statement: “This planned attack threatened lives and would have left thousands of Marylanders in the cold and dark.
“We are united and committed to using all legal means necessary to disrupt the violence, including hate-fueled attacks.”
Brandon Russell, pictured, is a founding member of the neo-Nazi group Atomwaffen Division and has previously served time in prison for possessing bomb-making materials
Clendaniel allegedly conspired to secure weapons as part of the extremist plot to keep Baltimore in the dark
In the foiled attack, the two extremists attempted to use numerous weapons to instantly destroy several substations in Baltimore
Clendaniel had previously served a prison sentence for robbing convenience stores, while Russell was previously convicted in 2018 for possessing bomb-making materials.
The two ex-convicts then came forward with their extremist plot after their release from prison while still on probation.
Russell is a founding member of the neo-Nazi group Atomwaffen Division, which, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, wants to “herald the collapse of civilization.”
The far-right figurehead sparked controversy just six months after his prison sentence when he released a statement to his followers, thanking them for their “undying loyalty.”
In his prison statement he warned: ‘The sword has been drawn. There is no turning back.’