BISMARCK — A Canadian man was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison on Monday for two counts of destruction of an energy facility in North Dakota and South Dakota.

Cameron Monte Smith, 50, appeared before U.S. District Court Judge Daniel Traynor in Bismarck, who sentenced him to serve 12 years and six months for each count to be served consecutively. Smith will also have to complete three years of supervised release, and pay more than $2 million in restitution to the victims.

Smith pleaded guilty to the two offenses on Sept. 11, 2024, where he admitted to damaging the Wheelock Substation near Ray, in an amount exceeding $100,000 in May 2023. The Wheelock substation is operated by Mountrail-Williams Electric Cooperative and Basin Electric Power Cooperative. Smith also admitted to damaging a transformer and pump station of the Keystone Pipeline near Carpenter, South Dakota, in an amount exceeding $100,000 in July 2022.

Smith damaged the facilities by firing multiple rounds from a high-power rifle into the equipment resulting in disruption of electric services to the N.D. customers and resulting in disruption of the Keystone Pipeline in S.D.

“This sentence serves as a reminder that the Department of Justice will use all its resources to investigate and aggressively prosecute any attack on our critical civilian infrastructures,” said

Jennifer Klemetsrud Puhl, acting U.S. attorney for the District of N.D. “Our law enforcement partners and career prosecutors in the Districts of North and South Dakota deserve recognition for working shoulder to shoulder to bring this defendant to justice, thereby protecting our citizens’ access to essential energy services.”