Abduwali Muse

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Abduwali Muse
Born Abduwali Muse
c. 1990 (age 33–34)[1]
Galkayo, Somalia
Other names Abdulwali Abdukhad Muse,[1] Abdul Wali Muse, Wal-i-Musi
Criminal charge Maersk Alabama hijacking
Criminal penalty 33 years and 9 months imprisonment
Criminal status Incarcerated
Parent(s) Adar Abdurahman Hassan

Abduwali Muse (Somali: Cabdiweli Cabdiqaadir Muuse; pronounced [ʕɑbdɪwɛli ʕɑbdɪqɑːdɪr muːsɛ]; Audio file "En-us-Abdiwali Abdukhadir Muse from Somalia pronunciation (Voice of America).ogg" not found) is a Somali ship hijacker. He is the sole survivor of four pirates who hijacked the MV Maersk Alabama in April 2009 and then held Captain Richard Phillips for ransom.[2] On February 16, 2011, Muse was sentenced to over 33 years in U.S. federal prison.[3]

Early life

Muse was born in Galkayo, a divided city in north-central Somalia. The Federal Bureau of Prisons states he was born in 1990,[1] while his mother states he was born in 1992,[4][5] and his father states he was born in 1993.[6][7][8]

At a hearing to determine Muse's age, Assistant United States Attorney Brendan McGuire informed U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrew J. Peck, that Muse had told Americans he was variously 16, 18, 19 and 26 years old.

Muse is short in stature—Colleen Long and Larry Neumeister, writing for the Associated Press, reported that Muse was, "only five foot two inches (157 cm) tall."[9]

Attack on the Maersk Alabama

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Further information: Maersk Alabama hijacking

According to his indictment, Muse was the first of the four men who boarded the Maersk Alabama. During the attack, he was stabbed in the hand by a sailor. The crew tied Muse up for 12 hours and offered him in exchange for the Alabama's captain, Richard Phillips.[10] Muse was thought to be the first person to be charged with piracy in an American court in more than 100 years,[11] when courts ruled in 1885 that the Ambrose Light was not a pirate vessel. A more recent case, 2008's United States v. Shi,[12] which was quoted in his indictment, involves murder and a crew member taking over a ship and holding a hostage.[13]

He was portrayed by Barkhad Abdi in the 2013 film Captain Phillips, a dramatization of the events in 2009, also starring Tom Hanks as the titular character.

Additional attacks

In 2010, Muse was charged in connection with two additional attacks on international shipping.[14][15] The indictment does not name the two vessels involved, hijacked in March and April 2009. However, they are likely to include the 700-tonne fishing vessel Win Far 161, which was used as a mother ship in other attacks, including the Maersk Alabama hijacking.[16][17] Two of the Win Far 161's crew, one sailor from mainland China and the other from Indonesia, died of illness.[18]

Trial

Muse was tried in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York in New York City.[19]

As mentioned, there was some confusion as to his age. According to the New York Daily News, he was at the time 17 to 19 years old.[2] Muse was charged, and was to stand trial in New York because of the local FBI office's expertise in handling cases where major crimes were perpetrated against Americans in Africa, such as the 1998 United States embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania. CBC News also reported that U.S. authorities had considered transferring him to authorities in Kenya per international agreement to prosecute pirate suspects.[5][20]

When initially captured, U.S. officials reported Muse as being 16 to 20 years old, and that his name was Abduhl Wali-i-Musi. U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates also asserted that all four pirate suspects were between the ages of 17 and 19. On April 20, 2009, CBC News reported that U.S. officials indicated that investigators had confirmed Muse was over 18, which precluded additional legal steps to prosecute him.[5]

However, Muse's mother, Adar Abdurahman Hassan, stated in a telephone interview with the Associated Press that U.S. authorities had both his name and age wrong.[5] She indicated that he was only 16 years old and that his name was Abdi Wali Abdulqadir Muse. In an interview with the BBC Somali service, Muse's mother also appealed to the U.S. government and president to free her son,[21] asserting that Muse had been lured into pirate activity by wealthy criminals.[5]

In a court ruling on April 21, 2009, U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrew J. Peck decided Muse was not under 18 and that he could be tried as an adult.[22] Muse was then brought to New York to face trial on charges including piracy under the law of nations, conspiracy to seize a ship by force, conspiracy to commit hostage-taking, and firearms related charges, carrying a potential of up to four life sentences.[23] The charge of piracy has a mandatory life sentence (18 USC 1651),[24] and there is no parole in U.S. federal prisons.

On May 19, 2009, a federal grand jury in New York returned a ten-count indictment against Muse.[25]

Muse pleaded guilty to the hijacking, kidnapping and hostage-taking charges on May 18, 2010.[26] Charges of piracy and possession of a machine gun were dropped in exchange for the guilty plea.[27]

On February 16, 2011, Muse was sentenced to 33 years and 9 months in federal prison.[28] Register Number: 70636-054. As of February 2014, he is incarcerated at the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Indiana.[1]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1651"USC: Title 18: Part I: Chapter 81: § 165118 USC § 1651 - Piracy under law of nations"]. Legal Information Institute. Cornell University Law School.
  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  26. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  27. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  28. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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