FBI charges neo-nazi leader in attack plot

WASHINGTON — The FBI arrested two people, including a neo-nazi leader, before they could attack Baltimore’s power grid, officials said on Monday.

The suspects, Brandon Russell from Florida and Sarah Clendaniel from Maryland, were taken into custody last week, officials said in a briefing on Monday.

The FBI said the plot was racially motivated but did not provide details. About 62 per cent of Baltimore city residents are Black, according to U.S. Census data.

Russell is a founder of a neo-nazi group named Atomwaffen Division that works toward “ushering in the collapse of civilization,” according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, a civil rights organization that tracks U.S. hate groups.