Thirteen Somali and One Yemeni Indicted For Pirate Attack That Killed Four Americans

NORFOLK, VA—Yesterday, a federal grand jury in the Eastern District of Virginia indicted 13 Somalis and one Yemeni with pirating a yacht and taking hostage four U.S. citizens, who were ultimately killed before their release could be secured. (The four American victims are seen in the above CBSNews.com photo. They are left to right, Scott Underwood Adam, Jean Savage Adam, Phyllis Macay and Bob Ridge). Neil H. MacBride, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Diego Rodriguez, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's New York Field Office; Alex J. Turner, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Norfolk Field Office; and Mark Russ, Special Agent in Charge of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) in Norfolk, made the announcement. "This is a horrific crime, involving the armed hijacking of an American ship and the slaughter of American citizens," said U.S. Attorney MacBride. "The alleged pirates will now face justice in an American courtroom." "These 14 men are alleged to have been willing to do anything, including killing their hostages, in a vain attempt to obtain ransom," FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Fedarcyk said. "Modern day piracy has real and serious consequences, disrupting commerce and threatening Americans' lives. It is a crime against the international community, a form of terrorism on the high seas. Today's charges should send a clear message to those who attempt to engage in piracy against Americans or American vessels: even on the open ocean, you are not beyond the reach of American justice." "The Naval Criminal Investigative Service provides unique forward deployed law enforcement capabilities to the U.S. Navy's Maritime Strategy," said NCIS Special Agent in Charge Russ. "NCIS special agents are currently deployed to support the Navy's counter-piracy strategies and national objectives. This case clearly represents the undeniable aspect of violence and criminality which is associated with all acts of piracy. Additionally, the well coordinated community response demonstrates the strong working relationship between uniformed military forces and NCIS—which is a civilian agency—and our federal partners to ensure cooperative security and stability across the maritime domain." The indictment was returned on March 8, 2011, and remained sealed until the defendants made their initial appearances before a magistrate judge in Norfolk. According to a three-count indictment, 14 alleged pirates boarded an American sailing vessel named the Quest on Feb. 18, 2011, and held four U.S. citizens hostage for five days. The U.S. military negotiated with the alleged pirates to attempt to free the hostages. As the military continued its negotiations, at least one of the alleged pirates on board the Quest fired a rocket-propelled grenade at a U.S. Navy ship, the USS Sterett. That same day—without provocation—at least three of the men on the Quest allegedly intentionally shot and killed the four hostages before their release could be secured. Following the shooting of the hostages, the Somalis on the high seas were taken into custody by the U.S. military. The indictment states that the alleged pirates possessed a rocket-propelled grenade and several AK-47 and FAL assault rifles and that the defendants threw overboard additional weapons prior to being taken into custody. All 14 men were charged with piracy, which carries a mandatory penalty of life in prison. In addition, the indictment also charges them with conspiracy to commit kidnapping, which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison, and the use of a destructive device during a crime of violence. The latter charge carries a mandatory minimum of 30 years in prison and a maximum of life in prison, which would run consecutive to all other charges. This investigation was conducted by the FBI's New York Field Office and Norfolk Field Office and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Benjamin L. Hatch, Joseph DePadilla and Brian Samuels from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.

U.S. Admiral Provides Details Of Somali Piracy Killings

By Jim Garamone, American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Feb. 22, 2011 - Four pirates are dead and 15 are in custody, but not before they killed four Americans in the bloodiest piracy incident in recent history, the commander of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command told reporters in a conference call today.

Navy Vice Adm. Mark I. Fox (seen in the above U.S. Navy photo), who also commands the Navy's 5th Fleet, said the pirates shot Scott and Jean Adams of California and Phyllis Mackay and Bob Riggle of Washington state. The surface vessel Quest was sailing around the world when the Somalis hijacked it off the coast of Oman.

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney told reporters on Air Force One that President Barack Obama authorized the use of force if there was an imminent threat to the hostages. He said the president was informed of their deaths at 4:42 this morning.

"The loss of our fellow Americans is a tragedy," Fox said from his headquarters in Manama, Bahrain.

The admiral gave a timeline of the action. Pirates captured the vessel about 190 nautical miles southeast of Masirah Island, Oman, Feb. 18. Four U.S. Navy warships responded: the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise, the guided-missile cruiser USS Leyte Gulf and the guided-missile destroyers USS Sterett and USS Bulkeley.

The ships found the vessel and made contact with the pirates via bridge-to-bridge radio, and began a series of negotiations. Yesterday, two pirates boarded the USS Sterett to continue negotiations.

"At 8 a.m. this morning ... a rocket-propelled grenade was fired by the pirates from the Quest toward the Sterett," Fox said. "Immediately thereafter, gunfire erupted from inside the cabin of the Quest. Several pirates appeared on the deck of the Quest and moved up to the bow with their hands in the air in surrender."

U.S. special operations forces closed in on the Quest in small boats and boarded the yacht. "They discovered that all four hostages had been shot by their captors," Fox said. The service members took immediate steps to provide medical care, but the four Americans died of their wounds. The boarding party also found two dead pirates aboard the vessel.

The special operations forces did not fire weapons during the boarding, Fox said.

"While clearing the vessel, two additional pirates were killed," the admiral said. "The remaining 15 suspected pirates are in U.S. custody."

Fox said two additional pirates were killed as the special operators cleared the boat. One was killed with a pistol, the other in a knife fight, the admiral said. There were no casualties to service members or damage to Navy ships. The Navy and the FBI are investigating the incident.