NORFOLK, VA. (AP)-Lawyers for a Somali pirate charged the highest United States has never caught a wanted all charges dismissed, saying that the United States has no jurisdiction to prosecute and that even if that happens, Somalia is a country that is too dangerous to travel to and mount an adequate defense.
Mohammad Saali Shibin face a litany of charges of piracy, yacht search, which resulted in the deaths of all four Americans on board. They were the first Americans killed in a wave of hijackings that struck the Indian Ocean in the last few years.
Unlike the other 14 people indicted in the case, Shibin never set foot on board. Instead, Prosecutors say he acted as a land-based negotiators examined how much ransom to seek for America.
He also faces a series of allegations in securing ransom merchantmen Germany. An indictment accused Shibin received $ 30,000 to $ 50,000 to negotiate the ransom to Marida Marguerite is estimated in the millions.
If found guilty of piracy off the ship, he faces a mandatory life sentence. He was also the face of hostage taking, kidnapping and weapons charges, among others.