'A craving for mayhem’: Idaho man who planned ISIS church attacks gets 18 years in prison

Alexander Scott Mercurio, 21, of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, was sentenced on Tuesday to 18 years in prison and lifetime supervised release for attempting to provide material support and resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization, the US Justice Department said.“With today's sentencing, this individual is being held accountable for pledging allegiance to ISIS and planning an attack on US soil,” said Assistant Director Jarod Brown of the FBI's Counterterrorism Division.Mercurio pleaded guilty to supporting ISIS in October 2025, after law enforcement presented evidence that he had pledged allegiance to ISIS in the days before the planned attack, according to local news outlet The Lewiston Tribune.Mercurio was not charged with a separate attack-related offense. The criminal complaint filed on April 8, 2024, cited both the attack plan and his financial support for ISIS as probable cause for his arrest, but its only charge is “providing material support or resources to designated foreign terrorist organization.”According to an FBI affidavit filed with the complaint, Mercurio planned to incapacitate his father with a metal pipe, restrain him with handcuffs, and take his firearms to use in a mass-casualty attack on churches in Coeur d'Alene in the name of ISIS. He also planned to use flame-covered weapons, explosives, knives, and a machete in the attacks.Investigation began with cryptocurrency network funding ISISThe FBI became aware of…