Photo: FBI
The FBI arrested an Idaho teenager accused of pledging his support to ISIS and planning to attack nearly two dozen churches. A 48-page federal complaint said that 18-year-old Alexander Scott Mercurio was taken into custody on Saturday (April 6), one day before his planned attack, which was meant to coincide with the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
Prosecutors said that Mercurio had plans to attack 21 churches using "weapons, including knives, firearms, and fire." The criminal complaint includes messages between the teen and an FBI confidential human source.
"Stop close by the church, equip the weapon(s) and storm the temple, kill as many people as possible before they inevitably disperse/scatter, then burn the temple to the ground and flee the scene," Mercurio allegedly wrote.
Before the attack, FBI sources met with Mercurio and heard him affirm his allegiance to ISIS and discuss his plan. He allegedly said he was going to attack his father with a metal pipe and then steal his guns to use in the church attacks.
During a search of the teen's home, investigators recovered butane canisters, lighters, handcuffs, a knife, a pipe, and a machete. They also noted that his father had several firearms stored in the home.
If convicted, Mercurio faces up to 20 years in prison.
"Thanks to the investigative efforts of the FBI, the defendant was taken into custody before he could act, and he is now charged with attempting to support ISIS's mission of terror and violence," Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.