Prosecutors say Brandon Russell was the leader of a neo-Nazi group who orchestrated a plot to knock out power to the city of Baltimore to sow social chaos.

The white supremacist and neo-Nazi beliefs of a Florida man accused of plotting to destroy Baltimore’s power grid are not up for debate in federal court over the next two weeks, a prosecutor and defense attorney agreed at the outset of his trial Tuesday.

Brandon Russell, 29, encouraged his then-girlfriend, Sarah Beth Clendaniel, to carry out the power grid attack, hoping to cause chaos in furtherance of their shared white supremacist views, according to prosecutors. The two were arrested in February 2023 — before their plans were executed.