A U.S. soldier was sentenced Friday to 14 years in prison for trying to aid an Islamic State killing squad.
Cole Bridges, 24, was sentenced following his June 14, 2023, guilty plea to terrorism charges.
Mr. Bridges joined the Army about five years ago and was assigned as a cavalry scout with the 3rd Infantry Division based at Fort Stewart, Georgia. But before he became a soldier, Bridges began researching and consuming pro-terrorism propaganda and expressed support for Islamic State and jihad on social media, according to Manhattan federal prosecutors.
Around October 2020, Bridges began communicating online with someone she believed to be an IS supporter. Authorities say the man was actually an undercover FBI agent.
Bridges told the secret agent that he was dissatisfied with the U.S. military and wanted to help IS. He then provided “training and guidance, including advice on potential targets in New York City, to people purporting to be Islamic State fighters who were planning attacks,” according to a press release announcing the ruling.
Mr. Bridges also gave the undercover personnel portions of U.S. military training manuals as well as information on combat techniques. He did so “with the understanding that the material would be used by ISIS in planning future attacks.”
In December 2020, Bridges began directing covert operatives to learn how purported Islamic State fighters were targeting U.S. forces in the Middle East. Prosecutors said Bridges also shared guidance on how best to protect IS positions in order to attack U.S. special forces.
This advice included how to wire explosives into some buildings to kill troops. Early the following year, prosecutors said Bridges provided an undercover officer with a video of him wearing a military bulletproof vest, “standing in front of a flag commonly used by IS fighters and making gestures symbolic of support for ISIS.” .
About a week later, Bridges sent yet another video in which he “used a voice-manipulated device” to utter a propaganda speech in support of anticipated IS attacks on U.S. military personnel, officials said. said.
Mr. Bridges will serve 10 years of supervised release after being sentenced to federal prison.
“Cole Bridges used his U.S. military training to pursue his horrific goal of brutally murdering his fellow soldiers in a carefully planned ambush,” Manhattan U.S. Attorney Damien Williams said in a press release. said. “Bridges attempted to attack the very soldiers he was entrusted to protect, but to make this abhorrent act even more troubling, the attack was carried out by people he believed to be members of a dangerous foreign terrorist organization. I was eager to help you plan.
“This is the worst betrayal of orders.”
