SAN ANTONIO — A San Antonio man who tried to destroy multiple 5G cell towers has been sentenced to more than six years in prison, the Department of Justice announced Thursday.
According to court documents, Sean Aaron Smith, 30, attempted to set fire to and destroy five towers between April 2021 and May 2022 before he was arrested during a traffic stop. In August 2023, he pleaded guilty to six counts of arson affecting interstate and foreign commerce and two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm. He had been sentenced to up to five years in prison on each arson charge.
Jamie Esparza, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas, said, “My office is defending against attacks on critical infrastructure that attempt to take down cell phone systems and endanger citizens who need access to the 911 emergency alert system.” We will not tolerate it.”
“An attack on a community’s infrastructure can have devastating effects,” said Doug Olson, acting special agent in charge of the FBI’s San Antonio Division. “Sean Smith has repeatedly attempted to burn down cell phone towers around San Antonio in support of his anti-5G ideology. At the time of his arrest, despite being a convicted felon, We would like to thank the San Antonio Fire Department Arson Squad, the FBI, the San Antonio Police Department, and the Texas Department of Public Safety for their continued support in keeping our community safe. , I would like to thank the Texas Rangers.”
Court documents say Smith had anti-government beliefs. Arsonists around the world who believe in the baseless conspiracy theory that 5G cell towers cause the spread of the coronavirus have set fire to hundreds of cell phone towers during the pandemic.
