Terror Plot Nets 20 Year Sentence For Adams Man

iBerkshires.com reports three years and two months after an arrest that eventually led to charges of violating federal terrorism statutes, an Adams man has agreed to begin serving a 20-year sentence and a lifetime of supervised release.

Alexander Ciccolo appeared Wednesday afternoon before Judge Mark Mastroianni in U.S. District Court, but the now-convicted terrorist said little in a 47-minute hearing, only speaking up to answer direct questions from the judge.

Mastroianni accepted the sentencing recommendation agreed to in advance by the government and Ciccolo's attorneys, David Hoose of Northampton and Ramzi Kassem of New York City.

Ciccolo, then 23, was arrested on July 4, 2015, and originally held on violation of federal weapons possession charges. Later that summer, the government revealed in court documents that it suspected Ciccolo of sympathizing with and plotting on behalf of the Islamic State or ISIL.

In May, Ciccolo pleaded guilty on all charges, including that he supported ISIL and planned a terror attack on an unnamed college campus outside the commonwealth.