Puyallup man pleads guilty to conspiring to attack Pierce County substations

PIERCE COUNTY, Wash. — A Puyallup man pleaded guilty in federal court Friday to conspiring to attack power substations over the winter holidays last year in Pierce County.

The attack took out power for 30,000 people on Christmas and did more than $3 million dollars worth of damage.

According to court documents, 32-year-old Matthew Greenwood admitted in a plea agreement that he and 40-year-old codefendant Jeremy Crahan vandalized four substations — two in Graham, one in Spanaway, and another in South Hill.

Both men hatched the scheme to disrupt power so they could break into ATMs and businesses to steal money. After those incidents, the men also spent time looking for other ways to cause power outages by cutting down trees but were arrested before that happened.

If convicted, Greenwood and Crahan each face up to 20 years in prison. Greenwood is expected to be sentenced on July 21.

Crahan still faces charges of conspiracy to attack energy facilities.

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