A former Syrian prison warden was sentenced to 60 years in prison in the United States by a federal court on charges of torture, the Department of Justice announced Thursday.
Samir Ousman Alsheikh, who served as director between 2005 and 2008 of the infamous Adra prison under Bashar al-Assad's regime, was found guilty of having "committed human rights atrocities in Syria, including silencing political opponents" by "ordering and participating in the torture of prisoners," the statement detailed.
Three former victims testified at the trial about the abuse they suffered, as well as acts of torture endured by other detainees.
"The conviction in this case is a tribute to the courage of the victims," said U.S. Deputy Attorney General A. Tysen Duva, quoted in the statement.
Alsheikh was also convicted of "visa fraud" and "attempted naturalization fraud" in the United States.
Aged 74, he arrived in the country in 2020 and later applied for citizenship in 2023. He was arrested and charged in July 2024 in Los Angeles for lying about his past in order to obtain a residency permit.
"Human rights abusers who come to the United States will find no refuge here. We will find them and they will be prosecuted and punished for their heinous crimes," Duva insisted.
Following an 11-day offensive, a rebel coalition dominated by the radical Sunni Islamist group Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) achieved the fall of Al-Assad in 2024.
