A member of the infamous ISIS execution squad, dubbed the Beatles, was sentenced to life in prison on Friday for brutally beheading US hostages in Syria, including journalist James Foley.
Alexandra Kotei, 38, showed no emotion as the sentence was handed down during an emotional hearing in Alexandria District Court in Virginia, while members of his victims’ families watched.
The British-born terrorist pleaded guilty last year to the abduction and murder of Foley and his fellow journalist Stephen Sotloff, as well as aid workers Kayla Mueller and Peter Cassig, between 2012 and 2015.
Several family members made powerful statements about the impact on the victim during Kotei’s sentence, describing the fear of knowing that relatives were in captivity and the grief they experienced after his death.
“I will not hate you,” Kasig’s mother, Paula Kasig, told Kotei. “It will give sadness, pain and bitterness too much power over me. I choose to let my heart be broken, not broken. ”
Kotei is one of two British citizens extradited to the United States in 2020 to be charged with the heinous murder of four Americans. HANDOUT (Syrian Democratic Forces) AFP via Getty Images
Kotei, one of two British citizens extradited to the United States in 2020 to be charged with heinous murders, admitted to torturing hostages, including raising them with water and striking them with an electric shock with a stunning gun.
Judge Thomas Selby Ellis described Kotei’s actions as “outrageous, violent and inhuman.”
Following the sentencing, Judge Ellis said he hoped it would deter other terrorist groups.
“We are not giving up. We will look for you. We will find you, “the judge told the US government.
Kotei admitted that he tortured the hostages, including picking them up with water and inflicting electric shocks on them. AP Photo / Hussein Malla, File
Kotei’s lawyer said during the sentencing that the terrorist would meet with some members of the victims’ families to “fix” himself as part of the terms of the plea deal.
The judge agreed that Kotei would remain in Alexandria until July so that these meetings could be arranged.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons has not yet determined where Kotei will serve his sentence.
The judge rejected a request from Kotei’s lawyer to recommend that the terrorist not be sent to the Supermax prison in Colorado, known as ADX Florence, which houses some of the world’s most dangerous criminals, including Mexican drug lord El Chapo.
The other Briton in US custody, El Shafi Elsheikh, was convicted by a jury in the same court earlier this month. His sentence is due in August.
With postal wires
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