Jason Woodring
Jason Woodring, 37, was arrested on a federal criminal complaint charging him with destruction of an energy facility, the Justice Department said.
Woodring is accused of carrying out multiple acts of sabotage, targeting high-voltage power lines and a substation over a period of months, that knocked out power to thousands, the agency said.
Woodring was arrested Saturday after authorities found evidence similar to those used at one of the sabotage sites, authorities said.
"Interviews were conducted and information from these interviews was connected to previous grid attacks resulting in the arrest of Woodring," according to a statement released by the the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas.
Authorities say a tractor was used to cut down two electric poles near Cabot, Arkansas, on October 5.
Federal authorities began investigating the reports of sabotage on August 21 after someone brought down one of multistate utility Entergy's high-voltage transmission lines in Cabot.
That was followed by fire set at a control house at a substation in Keo, about 25 miles south of Cabot, on September 29, the FBI said.
The FBI has said investigators suggested the perpetrator in the August attack had "above-average" electrical skills.
In the August incident, someone attempted to use a cable to catch a moving train to bring down the tower, Entergy spokeswoman Julie Muntsell said. The perpetrator also removed bolts from the base of the 100-foot tower, contributing to its downfall, she said.
In the substation fire, the suspected arsonist left behind a message: "You should have expected U.S." was inscribed on a control panel, the bureau reported.
The FBI said removing bolts from the tower "would have created substantial noise" during the early-morning incident, the FBI said in a written statement.
On October 5, power was knocked out to thousands of people after someone cut into, then used a tractor to pull down, two electrical poles in Cabot. The power lines were owned by First Electric Cooperative.
Comment: Woodring has since been convicted, rather quietly at that.
Investigators expected to find someone who really knew his stuff about electrical equipment... but instead caught a meth-head.
The 'Anonymous' signature left behind at one of the scenes is curious... Woodring doesn't exactly come across as an activist with a cause, so we wonder if there's more to this story than meets the eye.
Check out the extent of planning and efforts that went into these attacks by reading this affidavit from an FBI agent involved in the investigation.