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One of the ISIS men in the group dubbed “the Beatles” previously convicted of the kidnapping and killing of U.S. hostages was sentenced to eight concurrent life sentences Friday.
El Shafee Elsheikh, 34, was sentenced at the federal courthouse in Alexandria, Virginia for crimes he inflicted upon at least eight American, British, and Japanese citizens.
Among the victims were American journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, along with aid workers Peter Kassig and Kayla Mueller, which ultimately resulted in their deaths.
Elsheikh did not speak following his sentence, but Fox News confirmed he will be seeking an appeal and claimed his defense lawyers were not adequate during his trial.
The former British citizen served as a high-ranking ISIS fighter alongside Alexanda Amon Kotey – who was sentenced to life in prison earlier this year – and were captured together in January 2018 while attempting to flee Syria for Turkey.
FILE – In this photo provided by the Alexandria Sheriff’s Office is El Shafee Elsheikh who is in custody at the Alexandria Adult Detention Center, Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2020, in Alexandria, Va.
(Alexandria Sheriff’s Office via AP)
ISIS ‘BEATLE’ MEMBER SENTENCED TO LIFE IN PRISON FOR TERROR BEHEADINGS
According to an April statement by the Department of Justice, Elsheikh helped oversee the terrorist group’s jail and detention facilities where the hostages were held and forced to endure “a prolonged pattern of physical and psychological violence.”
Elsheikh oversaw the captivity of 26 hostages in Syria and “personally participated in the detention of and hostage negotiations for British, French, Italian, Danish, German, Spanish, Swedish, Belgian, Swiss, and New Zealand nationals.”
Check back on this developing story.
