Zachary Rosenthal, a 33-year-old former Tacoma resident with a criminal history, has been charged with sabotage targeting energy facilities in the Pacific Northwest. He faces a federal grand jury indictment for conspiracy and multiple counts of destruction or attempted destruction of energy facilities, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington.
Rosenthal, currently serving time for vehicular assault, is accused of damaging two energy facilities in Oregon last year, with a trial set for November 3. The new indictment includes allegations of his involvement in attacks on substations across Washington state between Toledo and Tumwater in the second half of 2022. These attacks involved methods like gunshots and heavy chains to cause short circuits, resulting in power outages affecting thousands of customers.
The indictment suggests that Rosenthal and his co-conspirators may have targeted these facilities to exploit the outages for burglary. Tampering with energy infrastructure carries a potential sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison and three years of supervised release. The case also seeks the forfeiture of any proceeds from the criminal activities.
The FBI is continuing its investigation into Rosenthal’s involvement in a larger pattern of attacks on energy infrastructure. While the charges are serious, it is important to remember that Rosenthal and any associates are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The case is being pursued by Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd Greenberg.
