Pirate Leader Sentenced to Life in Prison

The leader of a band of Somali pirates, along with another pirate, were sentenced to life in prison Tuesday for their roles in a February .

On Monday, two other pirates were also sentenced to life in prison.

Pirate leader Mohamud Salad Ali, 35, of Somalia, previously pleaded guilty in May to a piracy charge and to a charge of hostage taking resulting in death. He was sentenced to concurrent life sentences on both charges by U.S. District Judge Mark S. Davis.

Ali admitted that he served as the leader of the piracy operation, according to court documents.

“The boarding of the Quest by 19 armed and desperate men, unwilling to negotiate and intent on a ransom for the Quest and its crew set the stage for the violence and tragic murders that followed,” said Neil H. MacBride, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, in a statement. “Mohamud Salad Ali led the pirate attack, and his refusal to release the four Americans—even with the opportunity to proceed to Somalia with the Quest—reveals the callous regard that Somali pirates have for their hostages and the threat they pose to any U.S. vessel on the high seas.”

Ahmed Sala Ali Burale, 22, of Somalia, also was sentenced to life in prison Tuesday after pleading guilty in May to a piracy charge. Two other Somali pirates were sentenced to life in prison in August, and several more who have pleaded guilty are expected to be sentenced later this fall.

Ali and Burale both stated in their plea agreements that they did not shoot the four Americans. Burale admitted joining the group of pirates to make money and acknowledged carrying an AK-47 rifle without a stock during the incident. He also said that when the shooting started, he rushed to try to stop it by grabbing a shooter's rifle and pushing the barrel upward.

Jean and Scott Adam, who were members of , were aboard their 58-foot yacht S/V Quest with Seattle couple Phyllis Macay and Robert Riggle when they were hijacked in February by 19 Somali pirates about 900 miles from Somalia. U.S. warships overtook the pirates and Ali and skiff driver Muhidin Salad Omar boarded the USS Sterett to negotiate

The Del Rey Yacht Club in Marina del Rey served as the stateside mail drop for the Adams, since they departed in 2004 on a worldwide voyage aboard the S/V Quest that included the distribution of Bibles.

Omar admitted that he was approached to join the piracy operation because they needed a driver for the skiff, according to court documents. Mohamed admitted requesting to join the pirates before they left Somalia looking for a vessel to hijack. Mohamed also admitted holding a rifle while on guard duty with the hostages aboard the Quest.

U.S. warships overtook the pirates after they hijacked the Quest and Ali and Omar boarded the USS Sterett. They were told aboard the warship that the U.S. government does not pay ransoms, but the pirates could keep the 58-foot yacht, if they sent the hostages over on the skiff.

The conspirators refused to release the hostages because they believed they would get little money for the yacht, court documents said. As negotiations broke down, a rocket-propelled grenade was fired at the USS Sterett as a warning shot and at the same time three pirates started opening fire on the hostages.

Three alleged pirates—Ahmed Muse Salad, aka “Afmagalo,” 25; Abukar Osman Beyle, 20; and Shani Nurani Shiekh Abrar, 29—have been charged in a 26-count superseding indictment with the kidnapping, hostage-taking and murder of the Adam couple and Phyllis Macay and Robert Riggle, a Seattle couple aboard the Quest. Twenty-two of the 26 counts againt the three men are death-eligible offenses.

In total, 19 pirates participated in the open seas hijacking of the Quest. Fifteen were taken into custody, while two were killed by U.S. special forces who boarded the yacht and two were found dead. One pirate has not been charged because he was a juvenile. A piracy conspirator, Mohammad Saaili Shibin, was accused of serving as a ransom negotiator in Somalia and was arrested there and brought to the United States to face charges.

The investigation of the case is being conducted by the FBI and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.

Jean and Scott Adam departed for their worldwide voyage in 2004. A funeral service was held for them in March at St. Monica, where Jean used to sing in the church choir. The St. Monica Music Ministry in March also released a collection of music in their memory, with proceeds going to the Community Center Music Ministry Suite that will be built on the church's new campus.

Related stories:

• 2 More Somali Pirates Sentenced to Life

• 2 Somali Pirates Sentenced to Life

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• 11th Man Pleads Guilty to Piracy in Jean and Scott Adam Case

• 15th Pirate Indicted in Case Involving Killings of Jean and Scott Adam

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This article was originally published on Marina del Rey Patch.