Canadian sentenced to prison for shooting energy facilities

Cameron Monte Smith was ordered to serve a total of 25 years in federal prison for destroying two separate energy facilities in North and South Dakota. At his sentencing hearing Monday, he was also ordered to pay more than $2 million in restitution. The 50-year-old Canadian citizen pleaded guilty to the charges in September.

What did he destroy? While pleading guilty in U.S. District Court, Smith admitted to shooting up an electricity substation near Ray, N.D., in May 2023. The Wheelock substation is owned by the Mountrail-Williams Electric Cooperative and Basin Electric Power Cooperative. He also admitted to firing on a transformer and pump station on the Keystone Pipeline near Carpenter, S.D., in July 2022.

In both cases, he used a high-powered rifle to fire shots that hit the equipment, according to the Department of Justice. In each case, Smith caused damage costing more than $100,000. He disrupted the operation of the oil pipeline and service to power consumers, according to the Justice Department. The cases were investigated by the FBI with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and local law enforcement.