A 41-year-old Maple Falls man reportedly seen cutting power lines and damaging meter boxes told sheriff’s deputies he was doing so as instructed by singer Ariana Grande to stop KGB agents from poisoning the U.S. with nuclear toxins.
Deputies booked Greg Botteron into Whatcom County Jail in Bellingham on Tuesday, Aug. 20, on suspicion of first-degree malicious mischief.
Deputies responded Tuesday morning after witnesses reported that Botteron had cut power lines and meter box wiring to a home, according to a statement provided to The Bellingham Herald by Chief Deputy Kevin Hester.
Botteron then allegedly cut power lines from a power pole and inside another power meter box nearby. That is where deputies found him, still cutting lines, the statement said.
Botteron told deputies that he worked for the U.S. government and that he was disabling the boxes to prevent Russian KGB agents from poisoning the U.S. with nuclear toxins transferred through the power lines.
He also reportedly said Grammy Award-winning recording artist Ariana Grande told him to do it.
Puget Sound Energy had to respond to repair exposed power lines that created a safety hazard and the estimated damage was more than $5,000 for just the second location.
Tuesday’s arrest was Botteron’s second in eight days. He was booked Aug. 12 after he broke into a shed, removed several boxes and placed them along the roadway. Botteron said he did so because the KGB had stolen the property and he was just returning it to the rightful owners.