Two Somali males will spend 30 years in jail for the kidnapping of an American journalist, the U.S. Legal professional’s Workplace for the Southern District of New York stated Tuesday.
In a press launch, the legal professional’s workplace stated that U.S. Legal professional Damian Williams had “announced today that ABDI YUSUF HASSAN and MOHAMED TAHLIL MOHAMED were both sentenced to 30 years in prison for hostage-taking, terrorism, and firearms offenses, in connection with the 977-day hostage-taking of an American journalist in Somalia.”
The legal professional’s workplace stated per “Complaints, Indictments, evidence at trial, and statements made in public court proceedings,” American freelance journalist Michael Scott Moore made his manner “to Somalia to research piracy and the Somali economy” round early 2012.
Round that point, the legal professional’s workplace stated, he had been “driving in the vicinity of Galkayo, Somalia, when his vehicle was suddenly surrounded by a group of heavily armed men carrying assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenade launchers.” He was taken away from the automobile, crushed and pushed “away in another vehicle to a secluded area, where they held him with two Seychellois fishermen (‘Fisherman-1’ and “Fisherman-2’).”
“The fishermen had been abducted off the Somali coast in October 2011,” the legal professional’s workplace stated of their launch. “Moore was held in various locations in the vicinity of Hobyo, Somalia, for approximately three months.”
From there, the division stated Moore can be moved to completely different locations, together with a ship, however after “the payment of a ransom, Moore’s captors released him” round late 2014.
“For nearly three years, Michael Scott Moore was held hostage in Somalia by pirates,” Williams stated in an announcement within the launch.
“He was beaten, chained to the floor, and threatened with assault rifles and machine guns. Hassan and Mohamed were key players in that hostage taking,” Williams added. “Both abused their positions in Somalia’s government—Hassan, as a senior security official, and Mohamed as an army officer—by keeping a U.S. citizen captive to satisfy their own greed.”
The Hill has reached out to an legal professional for Hassan, in addition to an legal professional for Mohamed as reported by NBC Information.
