BLOUNT COUNTY, Tenn. — A Maryville man has pleaded guilty to damaging and attempting to destroy an interstate gas pipeline facility in Blount County earlier this year, federal prosecutors said.

Christopher Kyle Duke, 36, entered a plea agreement Wednesday to one count of damaging and attempting to destroy an interstate gas pipeline facility, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. He faces up to 20 years in federal prison, a $250,000 fine and up to three years of supervised release.

On May 9, Duke climbed a chain-link and barbed-wire fence surrounding East Tennessee Natural Gas LLC's metering and regulation station in Maryville. The station supplies natural gas to commercial and residential customers in Blount County, the DOJ said.

Duke damaged equipment used to monitor, meter and

See Full Page