Trendpills
An 18-year-old man from Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, has pleaded guilty to attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization after federal authorities uncovered his plot to carry out violent attacks on local churches in the name of ISIS.
Alexander Scott Mercurio entered a guilty plea on Wednesday, October 22, 2025, to the charge of attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham. According to a press release from the Department of Justice, Mercurio faces up to 20 years in federal prison. The plea agreement details his plan to use knives, fire, and firearms to cause mass casualties.
Court documents revealed that Mercurio's plot was thwarted by the FBI in April 2024. The investigation began after he was identified as a consumer and spreader of ISIS propaganda online. Mercurio communicated with a confidential FBI source, whom he believed to be an ISIS representative. During their conversations, he pledged an oath of loyalty (bay’ah) to ISIS and outlined his scheme to attack one or more churches in his hometown. His plan, which he intended to execute on a Sunday, included incapacitating his father to steal his firearms for the assault.
Before his arrest, Mercurio had prepared a statement to be read publicly, explaining his motivations for the attack. Federal agents intervened and arrested him before he could act. Local news coverage of the plea confirmed that he had identified a specific church as his primary target. The case highlights ongoing efforts by federal law enforcement to identify and disrupt domestic radicalization threats. Further details on the foiled terror plan underscore the severity of the intended violence, which was stopped just before its planned execution. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.
