Ex-Soldier Faces Jail Time For Sharing Bomb Plot On Social Media

An ex-serviceman who prosecutors say is a satanist was sentenced to two and a half years in prison Wednesday for spreading bomb-making instructions on social media.

Jarrett William Smith was charged with one count of distributing information related to explosives and weapons of mass destruction in September of last year after prosecutors alleged that the 24-year-old shared his plan to eliminate “Antifa” activists, CBS News reported.

A criminal complaint filed against Smith also pointed out that the soldier talked with an undercover FBI agent on the messenger app Telegram and detailed instructions on how to build a “Middle East style bomb” which can be detonated using a cellphone.

In addition, Smith relayed his plan to blow up an unidentified major news network using a car bomb and appeared to be targeting former Texas Congressman Beto O'Rourke, prosecutors said.

U.S. District Judge Daniel Crabtree denied a request from Smith's lawyer for a lenient sentence of 15 months followed by three years of supervised probation. ABC News reported that Federal law stipulates a sentence of up to 20 years in prison plus a fine of $250,000. However, sentencing guidelines contradict the sentence for first-time offenders, saying that the “presumed punishment” for the likes of Smith only accounts for a little more over three years of jail time.

Crabtree, although surprised by such a “low prison sentence” for such behavior, gave Smith an additional three years of supervised probation after serving his time behind bars.

“His planned actions, if executed, would have endangered countless members of the public,” said Crabtree.

The Anit-Defamation League claimed that Smith is associated with the Feuerkreig Division. The ADL described them to be a small, international neo-Nazi group that “embraces the most extreme interpretations of white supremacist ideology.”

Smith's legal counsel on the other hand pointed to his client's disability that led him to “endure a lifetime of victimization, isolation and trauma.” These factors were also instrumental for his involvement with online extremist groups.

Federal public defender Rich Federico meanwhile suggested that Smith actually had no knowledge in building a bomb, citing that Smith is “not far removed from adolescence,” making him susceptible to what he sees online.

Smith joined the Army on June 12, 2017 and was transferred to Fort Riley on July 8, 2019, said CBS News.