Ex-soldier jailed for 30 years for terror plot

A former National Guard soldier was sentenced to 30 years in prison for his part in a thwarted plot to carry out a deadly attack against his fellow soldiers at an armoury outside of Chicago in the US.

Hasan Edmonds, 23, the former soldier, pleaded guilty, along with his 30-year-old cousin Jonas Edmonds, to conspiring to provide material support to the Islamic State (IS) terror group last year as part of a plot that included carrying out a massive attack against the post he was assigned to in Joliet, Illinois, USA Today reported on Tuesday.

Jonas Edmonds was sentenced to 21 years in federal prison for providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization and lying to federal agents when he was initially questioned.

In sentencing the cousins, US District Judge John Lee charged that the Edmonds cousins, both Muslim converts who acknowledged they had been radicalized online, demonstrated "utter hatred and disdain for this country" with their actions.

But Lee said that Hasan Edmonds deserved a longer sentence, because of the special trust that was bestowed on him because of his position as a US soldier.

--IANS

pgh/