A U.S. Army soldier was sentenced to 14 years in prison on Friday for attempting to assist the Islamic State in planning an attack on fellow American troops, the Department of Justice announced. Cole Bridges, also known as Cole Gonzales, 24, will be subject to an additional 10 years of supervised release following his prison term.
Bridges, who was a private first class at the time of his arrest, was charged in 2021 after allegedly offering “military advice and guidance on how to kill fellow soldiers” to individuals he believed to be affiliated with ISIS. He pleaded guilty in June 2023 to terrorism charges, specifically for attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization and attempting to murder U.S. military personnel.
According to court documents, Bridges provided sensitive military information and expressed an “affinity for terrorist organizations including ISIS.” Prosecutors described him as having “proudly displayed a troubling and worsening affinity for terrorist organizations.”
“Cole Bridges is a traitor. He attempted to murder American soldiers,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Samuel S. Adelsberg said during the sentencing.
Bridges enlisted in the Army in 2019. Prior to joining, he had reportedly begun consuming online propaganda and expressing support for ISIS on social media. The Department of Justice noted that he had already been researching jihadist ideologies and sharing extremist content online before his enlistment.
