NEW YORK (AP) – A US Army soldier was arrested on Tuesday in Georgia on charges of terrorism after speaking online about plans to blow up the New York September 11 Memorial and other landmarks and attack US soldiers in the East Medium, officials said on Tuesday.
Cole James Bridges, of Stow, Ohio, was in custody on charges of attempting to materially support a terrorist organization – the Islamic State group – and attempted murder of a military man, said Nicholas Biase, a spokesman for federal prosecutors for Manhattan.
The 20-year-old soldier, also known as Cole Gonzales, was with the Third Infantry Division of Fort Stewart, Georgia, when he thought he was communicating with Islamic State online about the terrorism plans, Biase said.
Unbeknownst to Bridges, an FBI official was on the chat while Bridges provided detailed instructions on tactics and manuals and advice on how to attack the memorial and other targets in New York City, said Biase.
“As we claim today, Bridges, a US Army soldier, betrayed our country and its unit when he conspired with someone who believed he was an ISIS sympathizer to help ISIS attack and kill US soldiers in the Middle East,” said William F Sweeney Jr., head of the FBI’s New York office.
“Fortunately, the person he communicated with was an FBI employee and we were able to prevent his evil wishes from becoming a reality,” Sweeney said in a statement.
“Our troops risk their lives for our country, but they should never face such danger at the hands of one of their own,” said US Attorney Audrey Strauss.
Bridges is due to make a first appearance at the federal court in Augusta, Georgia, on Thursday.
It was not clear who would represent him.
According to a criminal complaint in the federal court in Manhattan, Bridges joined the U.S. Army in September 2019 and was assigned as a cavalry scout at Fort Stewart.
At some point, he started researching and consuming online advertising promoting jihadists and their violent ideology, officials said.
They said he expressed support for the Islamic State group and jihad on social media before starting to communicate in October with an FBI official who presented himself as a supporter of the Islamic State group in contact with the group’s fighters on Middle East.
According to court documents, he expressed his frustration with the US military and his desire to help the Islamic State group.
The criminal complaint said he then provided training and guidance to alleged ISIS fighters who were planning attacks, including advice on potential targets in New York City, including the 9/11 Memorial.
He said he also provided parts of a US Army training manual and guidance on military combat tactics.
Bridges also planned specific military maneuvers to help terrorist group fighters to kill American troops, including how best to strengthen a camp to repel a U.S. Special Forces attack and how to connect certain buildings with explosives to kill American troops, said the complaint.
This month, according to the complaint, Bridges sent a video of himself wearing body armor standing in front of an ISIS flag, gesturing support.
A week later, Bridges sent a second video in which he used a voice manipulator and narrated an advertising speech in support of the Islamic State group’s early ambush to American troops, the complaint said.
Fort Stewart officials did not immediately comment on Tuesday, said Kevin Larson, a spokesman for the Army post.
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Associated Press writer Russ Bynum in Savannah, Georgia, contributed to this report.