Washington man pleads guilty to vandalizing 4 substations and knocking out power for 14,000 people on Christmas

A Washington man pleaded guilty in federal court to vandalizing four power substations in Tacoma, Washington, that knocked out power to more than 14,000 customers on Christmas, the Department of Justice said in a news release on Friday.

Matthew Greenwood, 32, of Puyallup said in his plea that he and Jeremy Crahan, 40, vandalized the substations and plotted to fell trees to take out power lines.

Four substations were attacked: Kapowsin and Graham substations in Graham, Washington, operated by Tacoma Power, Elk Plain substation in Spanaway, Washington, and Hemlock Substation in Puyallup, Washington, the Department of Justice said.

The first substation, located in Spanaway and belonging to Tacoma Public Utilities, was attacked on December 25, 2022, around 5:30 a.m. local time, according to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department. 

The other substations were damaged during the early morning hours, police said.

Greenwood and Crahan planned the substation attack so they could rob ATM machines and businesses of money while the power was down, the news release said. Since his arrest Greenwood has been in intensive drug treatment, the news release said.

He faces up to 20 years in prison.

Jordan Freiman contributed reporting