A U.S. Army private has confessed to conspiring with a UK-based neo-Nazi group to kill fellow American service members stationed in Turkey by handing them classified information about troop movements.
Ethan Melzer, a 22-year old army private from Louisville, Kentucky, has been charged with conspiring and attempting to murder US nationals, conspiring and attempting to murder military service members, providing and attempting to provide material support to terrorists, and conspiring to murder and maim in a foreign country, the DoJ announced today.
“As alleged, Ethan Melzer, a private in the US Army, was the enemy within,” said acting US attorney for the southern district of New York, Audrey Strauss, in a statement.
“Melzer allegedly attempted to orchestrate a murderous ambush on his own unit by unlawfully revealing its location, strength, and armaments to a neo-Nazi, anarchist, white supremacist group.
Federal prosecutors say Melzer understood that this information would be used to ‘facilitate’ a ‘mass casualty attack’ on the unit.
Melzer is alleged to have used a username, ‘Etil Reggad,’ in his communications with an ‘anarchist, neo-fascist, neo-Nazi, and anti-Semitic’ organization known as the Order of Nine Angles, or O9A.
“Members and associates of O9A have espoused violent, neo-Nazi, anti-Semitic, and Satanic beliefs, and have expressed admiration for both Nazis, such as Adolf Hitler, and Islamic jihadists, such as Osama Bin Laden,” according to the DoJ.
O9A has expressed extremist views including one which claims Adolf Hitler ‘was sent by our gods to guide us to greatness’ and that the ‘story of the Jewish ‘holocaust’ is a lie to keep our race in chains and express our desire to see the truth revealed.’
O9A originated as a fringe group in the UK in the 1960s and has gained influence in recent years among violent neo-Nazi and white nationalist groups.
Four UK teenagers with ties to O9A have been jailed for terror offenses in the past year, and one was convicted of planning a terrorist attack.
The charges allege the soldier gave information about US troops stationed overseas to O9A.
The US advocacy group, the Southern Poverty Law Center, has described the group as an “occult neo-Nazi” organization, and British lawmakers have called for the group, which was founded there, to be banned, according to an NBC report.
The government says O9A has also expressed support for the views of Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden as well as backing for his organization’s terrorist attacks including the bombing of American embassies in Africa, the attack on the USS Cole, and the September 11, 2001, attacks.
Federal prosecutors said they obtained messages sent by Melzer on his phone in April in which he expressed a desire not to ‘end up’ like a US soldier who was arrested for being affiliated with a neo-Nazi group.
Melzer, who was stationed in Vicenza, Italy, with his unit, is alleged to have communicated with a co-conspirator on or around May 17.
The co-conspirator asked Melzer if the unit had deployed to Turkey because another co-conspirator ‘needs to know’ since he ‘has plans inshallah my brother, allahu akbar.’
‘Allahu akbar’, which is translated from Arabic as ‘God is great,’ is a frequent slogan used by jihadist terrorists.
The co-conspirator then asked Melzer: ‘Are we literally organizing a jihadi attack.’
To which Melzer replied: ‘Yes probably…As long as I get the info I need to give you all.’
The co-conspirator then asked Melzer if he was worried about ‘gett[ing] shot’ in the attack on his unit.
‘Who gives a f***…The after effects of a convoy getting attacked would cover it…It would be another war…I would’ve died successfully…Cause if another 10 year war in the Middle East would definitely leave a mark.’
A confidential informant communicated with Melzer on or around May 23.
Melzer messaged the source, asking: ‘I mean if you know some kinder weird Italian groups that would be willing to do something to stir something up I wouldn’t mind.’
To which the source replied: ‘Stir something up with what? I’m confused you said you were in Turkey in the military.’
Melzer replied that he was ‘stationed in Vicenza’ and that he was ‘going to Turkey for a deployment.’
When the confidential source asked Melzer what he meant by ‘stirring up,’ Melzer replied: ‘Ok let me be as direct as possible…IF YOU KNOW ANYONE IN TURKEY TELL THEM THIS INFO there.’
Melzer was then asked what information he was referring to, to which Melzer replied: ‘that you know that there is a convoy coming through Turkey soon and date and time will be given soon. Goddamn.’
The image above shows the logo for the Order of Nine Angles, or O9A, a UK-based neo-Nazi extremist group that is also believed to be active in the United States
The federal government alleges that the ‘convoy’ was Melzer’s unit.
In another text message intercepted by the government, Melzer claimed that he ‘used to be cool with a couple IS members who lived in France’ and that ‘3 of them are dead now and the last 2 I’ve lost contact with lately.’
The federal government alleges that ‘IS’ stands for Islamic State, also known as ISIS.
The confidential source then wrote to Melzer: ‘So for the sake of clarity (and because I’m an idiot so I want to make sure I’m not misunderstanding)—you currently stationed in Vicenza with U.S. army will be deployed to Turkey soon.
‘A ‘convoy’ (your own convoy?) will be going through Turkey, and on Monday you’ll be receiving the date and time the convoy will be going through Turkey.
‘And you’re going to dm me said time and date so that I can pass it along to any jihadis in Turkey. Right?
‘And [redacted] you’re going to do the same with your ‘hajis’ (lol).’
Melzer replied: ‘[y]ou just gotta understand that currently I am risking my literal free life to give you all this.’
He also wrote that he was ‘expecting results.’
When told that arranging an attack on his convoy could jeopardize his life, Melzer wrote: ‘Your kidding right. If we were to trigger this the right way the amount of s*** this would cause would cover it.
‘My life would be absolutely meaningless in the amount of s*** it would cause after.
‘Ok that sounds retarded but really it’s true.’
Melzer also told his co-conspirators information about his unit’s weaponry and defensive capabilities. He said that his unit lacked firearms including machine guns, grenade launchers, and anti-tank weapons.
The only weapons his unit was said to be armed with were M4 assault rifles, according to investigators.
The complaint said that during a May 30 interview, Melzer confessed to his role in plotting the attack, admitting he planned for it to cause the deaths of as many of his fellow service members as possible.
The complaint said he also declared himself to be a traitor against the United States whose conduct was tantamount to treason.
Melzer faces a maximum sentence of life prison on each of the following charges: conspiring to murder U.S. nationals; conspiring to murder U.S. military service members; and conspiring to murder and maim in a foreign country, according to the release.
He also faces up to 20 years in prison for attempting to murder U.S. nationals and another 20 years for attempting to murder U.S. military service members.
In addition, he faces 15 years in prison for attempting to provide and providing material support to terrorists.