US soldier sentenced for plotting to attack NYC 9/11 Memorial, kill troops in Middle East

A U.S. soldier was sentenced to more than a decade in prison after admitting to trying to help ISIS plan attacks on New York City landmarks — including the 9/11 Memorial in Manhattan — as well as help the terrorist group carry out more deadly attacks on American troops in the Middle East, according to court documents.

Cole Bridges was sentenced to 14 years in prison for attempting to provide material support to a terrorist organization and attempting to murder U.S. military service members, said U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams on Friday. The 24-year-old had previously pleaded guilty in June.

Bridges, a private first class in the U.S. Army who joined around Sept. 2019, had been searching and consuming online material that promoted jihadists since before his time in the military, a criminal complaint stated. He also would use social media to express his support for ISIS and jihad.

In Oct. 2020, about a year after joining the Army, Bridges began communicating over an encrypted messaging app with someone he believed to be an ISIS supporter, but was actually an FBI undercover agent. In those messages, he expressed frustration with the U.S. military and his desire to help ISIS take out American soldiers, according to the criminal complaint.

In addition to providing the undercover officer with portions of an Army training manual and guidance about U.S. military tactics, federal prosecutors said Bridges offered advice on how best to carry out attacks, including as it related to potential targets in New York City. When he was asked about the most effective way to conduct an attack, Bridges allegedly responded, "Striking the heart of the enemy, and setting a statement and a clear message to the leaders.”

In a later exchange, Bridges offered to come to New York to meet with the ISIS fighter with whom he thought he had been in contact. At that point, the conversation steered to potential targets in New York City, officials say.

In mid-November, the undercover agent sent Bridges photos of federal, local and foreign government buildings in and around the New York City area. That agent claimed "everything is so heavily guarded, I don't know that it's even possible to do an operation in NYC."

Bridges, who was also known as Cole Gonzales, allegedly advised the agent "choose your targets wisely" and inquired about other potential targets under consideration. It wasn't immediately clear which government buildings were the follow-up topic of conversation, but Bridges allegedly said there was "not enough firepower" for those. That was when the subject of the 9/11 Memorial was broached, the criminal complaint stated.

In December, Bridges began to supply the "ISIS" agent with instructions on how ISIS fighters could attack and kill U.S. forces in the Middle East. That included diagramming specific military maneuvers that would help terrorists carry out deadlier attacks on soldiers.

Bridges gave advice on the best way to fortify an ISIS encampment against an American attack, including by wiring certain buildings with explosives intended to kill U.S. troops, the complaint stated. In Jan. 2021, he provided a video of himself in body armor standing before an ISIS flag and made a symbolic gesture of support for ISIS.

About a week later, Bridges sent a second video in which he used a voice manipulator to narrate a propaganda speech in support of an anticipated ISIS ambush on U.S. troops

Searches of key words like "us soldier shooting" and "badass jihadi" found on his computer via warrant date back to Dec. 25, 2019, according to the criminal complaint. He allegedly updated his Facebook profile and background to reflect his views in Aug. 2020. Images of the changes were included in the complaint (see below).