Idaho
Idaho teen arrested for allegedly plotting to attack church in name of ISIS
Washington — An 18-year-old from Idaho was arrested Saturday and accused of plotting to kill churchgoers in his town in the name of ISIS, according to court documents unsealed Monday.
Alexander Mercurio was charged in a criminal complaint with providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization. He remains in custody and has not entered a plea, according to court records.
Investigators alleged Mercurio was about to attack at least one church in his area on April 7 — a Sunday — with guns, knives, and flammable chemicals, but they said they foiled his plans before he could carry out his plan.
Mercurio is accused of writing to an unnamed FBI source that he was set to “stop close by the church, equip the weapon(s) and storm the temple, killing as many people as possible.” His goal, according to investigators, was to carry out an act of martyrdom before the end of Ramadan — the holy month observed peacefully by Islam practitioners across the globe that emphasizes prayer and fasting — and pledge his allegiance to the leader of ISIS.
“I am going to perform a martyrdom operation very soon,” he allegedly wrote in one recent message. “The targets will be the various churches in my town.”
In the newly-released court documents, prosecutors described an evolution of beliefs beginning in 2022 when messages and posts allegedly revealed the teenager’s interest in ISIS and his parents’ apparent dissatisfaction with his religious beliefs. He stored media on his electronic devices including a jihadi chant, investigators said, and posted pro-ISIS material online.
Court documents revealed Mercurio also allegedly told members of a terror-affiliated group chat that he had previously been in contact with an individual who was later arrested for providing financial support to the terrorist group.
Earlier this year, he met at various points with a confidential FBI source and reiterated his desire to die a martyr. In meetings and via online messaging, Mercurio allegedly revealed that he planned to “donate every last cent in my bank to the State (ISIS)” and wanted to film a video message in support of ISIS before he carried out his attack.
“I really want to (carry out) an operation,” investigators alleged he said recently, and at a different time told the confidential FBI source that he wanted to “fix” what he saw as too many churches in his area.
According to prosecutors, his plan involved attacking his father with a metal pipe, stealing his guns and using them in the attack. Other components allegedly included using chemicals like hand sanitizer or butane to destroy the churches he targeted.
Charging documents alleged that on April 3, Mercurio declared his allegiance to the leader of ISIS, holding a knife and taking a photo in front of a flag wielded by the terrorist organization.
When asked by the FBI confidential source on April 5 if he was going to postpone his plans, prosecutors said Mercurio responded that he wasn’t, as described in court records.
The FBI executed a search warrant at his family’s home and arrested Mercurio on Saturday, one day before they said he intended to carry out the attack. Investigators seized a metal pipe, butane, hand sanitizer, a machete and multiple firearms locked in his father’s closet.
“The defendant swore an oath of loyalty to ISIS and planned to wage an attack in its name on churches in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement announcing Mercruio’s arrest on Monday. “Thanks to the investigative efforts of the FBI, the defendant was taken into custody before he could act.”
An attorney for the defendant could not be immediately identified.
The charges come just days after federal law enforcement agencies including the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security issued a bulletin to law enforcement across the country warning of “possible threats to public gatherings in the United States from threat actors” inspired by last month’s deadly terror attack on a Russian concert hall. ISIS-K claimed responsibility for the massacre that left over 100 dead.
Last week’s law enforcement bulletin obtained by CBS News did not offer specifics but said “ISIS-aligned media groups released messaging encouraging attacks against other mass gatherings.”
Idaho
Idaho is home to the nation's first DarkSky Reserve. Now it's home to the nations first DarkSky Certified Resort
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – A controversy is brewing as the City of Idaho Falls reviews its alcohol ordinance.
The goal is to consolidate four existing ordinances for beer, wine and liquor into a single law and ensure compliance with state code.
However, at its meeting last Thursday, the Idaho Falls City Council unanimously voted to remove the proposed ordinance from its agenda, in order to receive and consider additional public comment.
The proposed ordinance would:
1. Require commercial establishments selling, dispensing or permitting consumption of alcohol – including beer, wine or liquor – to have an alcohol license, alcohol catering permit or a charitable event permit.
2. Business events with 20 or less employees consuming alcohol at the business would be allowed.
3. Require alcohol servers to complete training every three years.
4. Individuals who violate the law could be charged with a misdemeanor.
Idaho Falls City Council President Jim Francis said the changes were the culmination of months of collaboration between law enforcement, business owners and city attorneys.
“We wanted to provide a safe environment – the primary point here – for public gatherings,” Francis said. “We recognize that certain antiquated elements of the current code are overly restrictive and needed to be addressed. We wanted to make the code more accessible to the public. We needed to address over-pouring issues. We wanted to reduce penalties where possible for violations, particularly the first offenses, and yet make the code clear enough to be enforceable consistently by law enforcement.”
But City Council Member John Radford said the changes represent an overreach by city government.
“I believe it’s a bad policy. What problem are we solving in the name of trying to solve a non-problem?” Radford said. “We’re becoming big brother around alcohol in your private property. I’m concerned that landlords will be at risk of being charged with a misdemeanor if they knowingly, which I made sure that was in there, because that is what we’ve been talking about, allowed people to drink in our business. We will be outside the norm of Idaho cities. This is a big step, and I don’t think the public has weighed in on this.”
At a City Council Work Session on June 1, Idaho Falls Chief of Police Bryce Johnson cited an increase in alcohol-related crime – particularly downtown – as a reason for the changes.
“DUI is there, but this would include sexual assaults, assaults, batteries, disturbances, urination, public vandalism, shooting – all sorts of crimes,” Johnson said.
But business owners are concerned about the potential impact on commercial enterprises.
“The ordinance doesn’t address the real problem – which is people drinking … at one event and then showing up in a bar or restaurant already hammered and causing problems anyway,” ” said Terri Ireland, representing the Idaho Falls Downtown Merchants Association. “The industry is really well-regulated by state and local laws already.”
The City of Idaho Falls began the process of updating its alcohol ordinance in January 2026, seeking input from community stakeholders.
Multiple community members spoke out about the ordinance.
For more in-depth information, you can read the full 39-page proposed alcohol ordinance here.
BOISE, Idaho (CBS2) — A simmering dispute between Idaho’s top elections official and the U.S. Department of Justice escalated this month after federal officials warned Secretary of State Phil McGrane about possible prosecution tied to non-citizens voting in Idaho.
The Justice Department sent a letter earlier this month threatening McGrane with prosecution. The warning came amid a broader conflict between the Trump administration and McGrane, whom the administration has sued over his refusal to provide unredacted voter rolls to the federal government.
Idaho’s chief of civil litigation, James Craig, responded on July 10. In a letter first reported by the Idaho Statesman, Craig pushed back on the federal warning, writing, “Insinuations of criminal violations of the federal election laws are not well taken,” and asking the department to “stop threatening your friends in Idaho.”
Craig also requested that the lawsuit against McGrane be dismissed and criticized the Justice Department for sending its letter directly to McGrane rather than to the Idaho attorney general’s office.
The attorney general’s office said the state has already referred 15 cases of possible non-citizen election violations to the Justice Department but is not aware of any of them being prosecuted. Craig’s letter ends by asking the department to do so.
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