Arabian Sea piracy suspects appear in Norfolk court

NORFOLK

Hours after touching down here aboard a U.S. Air Force plane, the 14 men suspected of hijacking and killing four Americans aboard a yacht last month made their first appearance in federal court Thursday.

The men - 13 Somalis and one Yemeni - face piracy, kidnapping and weapons charges. If found guilty, each could receive multiple life sentences.

Authorities said more charges could be added later, potentially for murder. They declined to speculate about whether the death penalty might be an option.

Dressed in dark blue sweat shirts and sweat pants, the piracy suspects were brought to federal court in downtown Norfolk in shackles. One of them appeared to be limping. Another wore an arm sling, while others had face masks over their mouths and noses.

Later in the afternoon, they appeared four or five at a time before Magistrate Judge Tommy E. Miller, who explained the charges through an interpreter and told the men in front of a packed courtroom that the United States will appoint them lawyers.

Their next court date was set for Tuesday.

All of the men are in their 20s or early 30s, according to court documents. They are all slender with short hair. They appeared well-behaved, quickly complying when told to sit or stand.

At one point, one of the Somalis asked if he could make a request of the judge.

"We are in the hands of the most powerful country on the planet," he said through an interpreter. "And our future looks very dark... "

Miller cut him off and instructed him not to saying anything else before talking to a lawyer. The Somali then apologized.

The suspect s were turned over to the U.S. Justice Department on Wednesday after spending two weeks aboard the Norfolk-based aircraft carrier Enterprise, one of four U.S. Navy ships that trailed the hijacked yacht and tried to free the American hostages.

A federal grand jury indicted the suspects Tuesday. The Justice Department made the charges public Thursday.

In a news conference, U.S. Attorney Neil MacBride said piracy and conspiracy to commit kidnapping each carries maximum penalties of life in prison, while the weapons charge carries a minimum of 30 years and a maximum of life.

Asked why none of the 14 was charged with murder, MacBride said more charges could be added. He said the decision of whether to seek the death penalty would be up to the attorney general.

MacBride said his office spoke with the victims' families Thursday morning to explain the charges brought so far.

The suspects are now in the custody of the U.S. Marshals. Authorities declined to say where in Hampton Roads they are being held or why some were wearing surgical masks except that the masks were a medical precaution to safeguard the public from possible infection.

The 58-foot yacht Quest was pirated off the coast of Oman in the Arabian Sea on Feb. 18. Four Navy ships responded, and on Feb. 21, two of the suspect s boarded the San Diego-based destroyer Sterett to represent the group in negotiations.

On Feb. 22, someone from the yacht fired a rocket-propelled grenade at the Sterett, according to the indictment. At some point that day, the indictment says, all four Americans were shot and killed without provocation by at least three of the alleged hijackers.

Navy SEALs stormed the yacht and captured 15 suspects. They recovered a rocket-propelled grenade launcher along with three live rounds, and several AK-47 and FAL assault rifles, the indictment says. It is believed that additional weapons were dumped into the sea before the men were captured.

The Quest's owners, Scott and Jean Adam of Los Angeles, and their friends Bob Riggle and Phyllis Macay of Seattle, died in the attack. It was the first time U.S. citizens have been killed in the recent wave of pirate assaults plaguing the Indian Ocean, which includes the Arabian Sea.

MacBride said that although 15 suspects were captured, only 14 are being charged because one is a juvenile, who authorities determined played a relatively minor role in the attack. The juvenile is being "returned to his family," MacBride said.

MacBride said the Quest remains in the custody of the U.S. Navy and that the investigation into the Americans' killings isn't over. The FBI and Naval Criminal Investigative Service are involved.

MacBride and officials with the FBI declined to provide further details about negotiations with the suspect s, including how much ransom the men wanted. Authorities also would not discuss details about the killings or the subsequent investigation beyond those included in the indictment, and MacBride wouldn't say when it was decided that the suspects would be brought to Norfolk.

Asked why they were brought here, he said only that his office has prove d its ability to handle such cases. Last year Norfolk hosted the first successful piracy prosecution in nearly 200 years, when five Somalis were convicted of an April 2010 attack on the Norfolk-based frigate Nicholas.

The prosecutors in the current case are Assistant U.S. Attorneys Benjamin L. Hatch, Joseph DePadilla and Brian Samuels.

Magistrate Judge Miller told the suspect s that they will be appointed separate lawyers. He explained that the lawyers would be tasked with helping to defend them, not with aiding the government in its case.

Miller also asked prosecutors to make sure the suspects are given the opportunity to contact their own governments or embassies.

Pilot writers Cindy Clayton and Tim McGlone contributed to this report.

Corinne Reilly, (757) 446-2949, corinne.reilly@pilotonline.com