Captured Pirate to Face Trial in US

Maersk captain on his way back to Vermont
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 17, 2009 2:45 AM CDT
Captured Pirate to Face Trial in US
The American ship, the Maersk Alabama, whose crew thwarted a pirate attack, arrives in Mombasa, Kenya.   (AP Photo / Sayyid Azim)

The only surviving pirate from the gang that attacked the Maersk Alabama will be put on trial in New York, authorities tell CBS News. The pirate—identified as Abdulwali Muse, 19—is believed to have been the ringleader. Muse, whose three cohorts were killed by Navy snipers, is likely to face charges that carry a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Authorities plan to try Muse in New York's Southern District court, which has handled several terror trials, including those of the co-conspirators in the bombings of the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Muse's former captive, Capt. Richard Phillips, is headed back to his Vermont hometown from Kenya today and the people of Underhill have been busy preparing "Welcome Home" banners.
(More Abulwali Muse stories.)

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