New Jersey Man Pleads Guilty to Attempting to Provide Material Support to ISIS

Gregory Lepsky, 20, of Point Pleasant, New Jersey, pleaded guilty to attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), a designated foreign terrorist organization.

Lepsky admitted that he planned to construct and use a pressure cooker bomb in New York on behalf of ISIS. Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers and U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced the plea, which was accepted by U.S. District Court Judge Michael Shipp.

According to documents filed in the case and statements made in court, Lepsky was arrested by the Point Pleasant Police Department on February 21, 2017, in connection with an incident that occurred in his family’s home. During the arrest, law enforcement officers searched the residence and found a new pressure cooker stored behind a roll of bubble wrap in Lepsky’s bedroom closet.

During further searches of computers and other digital evidence linked to Lepsky, law enforcement officers found evidence of Lepsky’s plan to build and detonate a bomb as part of his support for ISIS. Lepsky had used the internet to access ISIS directives, obtain bomb-making instructions, and purchase the pressure cooker and other items to be used in the attack.

Lepsky also admitted to telling others on social media that he intended to fight on behalf of ISIS and that he would, if necessary, become a martyr by driving a ‘bunch of explosives’ to where the ‘enemies’ could be found and blowing himself up.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, Lepsky will be given a sentence between 16 and 19 years in prison and a lifetime term of supervised release. The investigation was conducted by the FBI and the Joint Terrorism Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher in Newark; the N.J. State Attorney General’s Office under the direction of Attorney General Gurbir Grewal; the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Joseph Coronato; the Point Pleasant Police Department under the direction of Chief Richard P. Larsen; and the N.J. Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness under the direction of Director Jared Maples.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney James Donnelly for the District of New Jersey and Trial Attorney Justin Sher of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.

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