A former U.S. Army soldier was sentenced to 14 years in prison after pleading guilty to attempting to provide ISIS with tactical information to help plan attacks on U.S. soldiers. According to the U.S. Justice Department. Pfc. Cole Bridges, 24, of Stow, Ohio, enlisted in the Army in 2019 and was stationed at Fort Stewart, Georgia, with the Third Infantry Division.
Shortly after joining, Bridges began engaging with jihadist propaganda online and expressing support for ISIS on social media.
In October 2020, Bridges began communicating with an undercover FBI agent posing as an ISIS supporter. He shared U.S. Army training manuals and provided advice on ambushing U.S. soldiers, including tactics to increase the deadliness of attacks. Bridges also outlined how to fortify ISIS camps with explosives to kill U.S. troops as they entered buildings.
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Bridges also discussed potential terrorist targets in New York City, including the 9/11 Memorial & Museum. He sent videos pledging support for ISIS and further encouraged attacks on U.S. troops.
He was arrested in January 2021 and pleaded guilty in June 2023 to attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and attempting to murder U.S. military personnel. Along with his 14-year prison sentence, Bridges was given 10 years of supervised release.
The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, along with multiple federal, state, and local agencies, led the investigation. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams called Bridges’ actions “a betrayal of the worst order” for attempting to harm the soldiers he was meant to protect.
