NEW YORK — A former U.S. Army soldier and self-declared traitor who plotted to kill members of his overseas platoon was sentenced to 45 years in prison on Friday — with a judge calling his bigoted beliefs “repugnant” and his regret implausible.
U.S. District Judge Gregory Woods handed down the weighty sentence at a packed hearing in Manhattan Federal Court attended by several service members.
Describing the baby-faced former soldier’s betrayal as “corrosive,” Judge Woods said 24-year-old Ethan Melzer’s crimes of aiding people who wish America harm warranted an exceptionally long prison term.
