Washington:
A US judge Friday sentenced a member of a militant ISIS group nicknamed “The Beatles” to beheading American hostages during a hearing where the mother of a victim told the accused: “I will not hate you. .”
US District Judge TS Ellis in Alexandria, Virginia, held an emotionally charged hearing for London-born Alexanda Kotey, 38, who pleaded guilty to the murders of US journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff and aid workers Kayla Mueller and Peter Kassig.
The hostages held by Kotey and his fellow militants nicknamed them “The Beatles” because of their British accents. The hearing included testimonies from victims’ relatives.
Relatives described the fear of knowing loved ones were in captivity and the grief they felt in the wake of their death.
“I won’t hate you,” Kassig’s mother, Paula Kassig, told Kotey during the hearing. “It would give grief, pain and bitterness too much power over me. I choose to let my heart break open, not break it apart.”
Kotey’s lawyer said during the court hearing that, in an effort to “make amends,” Kotey is meeting with some of the victims’ relatives.
Ellis agreed to hold Kotey in Alexandria until July, saying the arrangement would facilitate those meetings.
Kotey was a citizen of the United Kingdom, but the British government revoked his citizenship. His ISIS cell took journalists and aid workers hostage, tortured them and distributed videotapes of gruesome beheadings on the internet.
Kotey admitted to torture of hostages, including waterboarding and electric shock with a stun gun.
Kotey’s attorneys had asked the judge to recommend that Kotey not be sent to Colorado’s Supermax Prison, known as ADX Florence, home to some of the world’s most dangerous criminals, including Mexican drug lord El Chapo.
Ellis declined to make any recommendation to the Bureau of Prisons about where Kotey will eventually be sent. That means Kotey is likely going to ADX Florence, but the federal prison office has yet to determine where Kotey should go.
US authorities had advised British officials that prosecutors would not demand the death penalty. As part of Kotey’s plea deal, US authorities have also pledged to make every effort to transfer him to a UK prison after 15 years.