U.S. federal prosecutors are dropping their case against a Somali man accused of negotiating a $1.7 million ransom payment for the release of the CEC Future cargo ship following its November 2008 hijacking in the Gulf of Aden. According to a report from the Associated Press, prosecutors have decided to drop all charges after a jury in December remained deadlocked on the … [Read more...]
Trial Begins in U.S. for Somali Pirate Negotiator
By Ian Simpson WASHINGTON, Nov 4 (Reuters) - The U.S. trial of a Somali man accused of piracy off the Horn of Africa began on Monday, with prosecutors portraying him as a ransom-hungry negotiator and his lawyers defending him as an intelligence source for the United States who served as a translator. Ali Mohamed Ali, a former Washington, D.C., resident, is charged with … [Read more...]
US Nabs Pirate Negotiator
WASHINGTON—Ali Mohamed Ali, 48, has been indicted for conspiracy to commit piracy and other charges that allege he acted as a negotiator on behalf of Somali pirates during the takeover of a merchant ship in the Gulf of Aden, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and James W. McJunkin, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI's Washington Field Office. Ali, also … [Read more...]
Somali man sentenced to 25 years for 2008 hijacking
WASHINGTON—Jama Idle Ibrahim, a/k/a Jaamac Ciidle, was sentenced today to 25 years in prison for a violent act of piracy in the Gulf of Aden against a merchant vessel, the M/V CEC Future, that began in November 2008 and lasted for 71 days, until January 16, 2009. Ibrahim, 39, of Somalia, pled guilty on September 8, 2010 to conspiracy to commit piracy under the law … [Read more...]
CEC Future Hijacking – VHF recording with coalition aircraft released
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUqcPtNCI-o This is the VHF recording between M/V CEC Future and a Coalition aircraft as the vessel was being attacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia back in early November 2008. The attack resulted in the CEC Future being siezed and held for over two months before ransom, of an undisclosed amount, was paid to the hijackers. According … [Read more...]