The United States Federal Court in Los Angeles on Thursday (September 17) sentenced former Syrian prison official Samir Ousman Alsheikh to 60 years in prison. The 74-year-old Alsheikh was found guilty of inflicting torture on prisoners during his tenure at a prison in Syria and of concealing his crimes from U.S. immigration authorities to obtain a green card and attempt to naturalize.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Alsheikh is the highest-ranking individual from the Assad regime to be personally tried and convicted outside of Syria. The court will hold a separate hearing for victim compensation.
In March of this year, a federal jury found Alsheikh guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit torture, three counts of torture, one count of immigration document fraud, and one count of attempted naturalization fraud. He has been in federal custody since his indictment in July 2024.
Evidence presented during the trial showed that from 2005 to 2008, Alsheikh served as the Deputy Director of Damascus Central Prison, also known as Adra Prison. He ordered the transfer of some prisoners to narrow solitary confinement cells in the underground “Wing 13” and subjected them to torture.
Multiple victims testified in court, recounting the horrific torture and abuse they endured for refusing to harm or kill political dissidents in the prison or for showing support to dissenters. Prison guards suspended inmates by handcuffing their wrists to ceiling pipes for days and physically assaulted them with fists or cables, resulting in severe injuries.
Witnesses described a torture device known as the “Flying Carpet” or “Magic Carpet,” consisting of two large wooden planks connected by hinges. Victims were bound face-up on the device with their waist at the hinge, and guards forcibly bent the lower plank towards the upper one, causing extreme bodily contortion and unbearable pain.
Alsheikh himself actively participated in the torture. Other victims were forced to wear red jumpsuits used for executions to instill fear or were beaten while being stuffed into car tires.
The Department of Justice’s press release also mentioned that after leaving Adra Prison, Alsheikh was appointed as the governor of Deir Ez-Zour province in Syria in 2011.
In 2018, he omitted his history of torture when applying for a U.S. visa, obtained a green card, and arrived in the U.S. to live in Lexington, South Carolina in 2020. In 2023, he continued to lie when applying for U.S. citizenship, concealing his past torture and abuse of prisoners, and was ultimately exposed and arrested by U.S. prosecutors.
Bill Essayli, Assistant U.S. Attorney, stated, “Those who commit atrocities like Alsheikh against victims have no place seeking refuge in our country. Hopefully, today’s sentencing can bring some comfort to the victims and help turn the page on their suffering.”
Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division, A. Tysen Duva, emphasized that the United States is not a safe haven for human rights violators. Officials from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) also stressed that regardless of how much time has passed, the U.S. will pursue such crimes relentlessly.