Virginia Court Sentences Somali Pirate To 30 Years In Prison
Virginia, United States (AHN) – Jama Idle Ibrahim, has been sentenced to 30 years in prison by a United States court after he was found guilty of attacking an American warship near the Somalia coast in one of the first piracy cases in over a hundred years. U.S. Navy sailors captured Ibrahim after he, along with several others, mistakenly attacked an American warship, thinking the vessel was an unarmed merchant ship.
Ibrahim admitted to the crime under a plea-deal, which may allow him to return to court to speak about the crimes of five other pirates facing similar charges. Ibrahim also faces charges of attacking a Danish ship in 2008.
Virginia’s Norfolk federal court handed down the sentence on Monday after convicting the five Somalis last week for attacking the USS Nicholas. All convicts are due to face a hearing in March next year.
“Today marks the first sentencing in Norfolk for acts of piracy in more than 150 years,” U.S. Attorney Neil MacBride said in a statement.
MacBride added that piracy has become a growing menace across the world, adding that today’s sentence, along with last week’s convictions, demonstrates that the U.S. would hold modern-day pirates accountable in its courtrooms.
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