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Ex A Syrian a government official was accused of allegations of torture by a grand jury in Los Angeles, US Department of Justice announced.
Samir Ousman Alsheikh, 72, of LexingtonSouth Carolina, he was allegedly the boss Damascus Central Jail — colloquially known as Adra Prison — between 2005 and 2008.
While he was leading prisonAlsheikh allegedly ordered his subordinates to deliver “severe physical and psychological pain and suffering to political and other prisoners,” according to a DOJ statement. Court documents allege that Alsheikh himself participated in the torture sessions.
The prison reportedly had a “punishment wing” where prisoners were sent to be beaten while hanging from the ceiling. Prisoners were also allegedly subjected to a device colloquially called a “flying carpet” that folded their bodies in half, causing excruciating pain and sometimes spinal fractures.
“Samir Alsheikh is accused of torturing political dissidents and other prisoners to deter opposition to the regime of then-Syrian President Bashar al-Assad,” said First Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole Argentieri, head of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division. “Alsheikh later allegedly lied about his crimes in order to obtain a US green card.”
“Victims of such violent treatment continue to suffer long after the physical acts of torture have stopped,” Argenteiri added. “The Department of Justice is committed to prosecuting the perpetrators of such crimes and will not allow them to hide in the United States through lies and cover-ups.”
US Attorney Martin Estrada said the “gross human rights violations” in the indictment were “appalling”.
“Our country will not be a safe harbor for those accused of committing crimes abroad,” he said.
Alsheikh held several positions in the Syrian police and state security forces, and later as head of the regional government. In 2011, the now-deposed Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad appointed him the head of Deir Ez-Zour province. Immigration documents state that Alsheikh immigrated to the US in 2020 and applied for US citizenship in 2023.
“When it comes to continuing our criminal investigations, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) have a long reach and an even longer memory,” said Special Agent Eddy Wang of the HSI Los Angeles Field Office.
“The defendant was accused of torturing prisoners in Syria almost 20 years ago, and today we are one step closer to holding him responsible for those heinous crimes. The United States will never be a safe haven for those who violate human rights abroad,” he added.
Alsheikh had already been charged with visa fraud and attempted naturalization fraud prior to his indictment. The indictment adds three counts of torture and one count of conspiracy to commit torture to his charges.
The former prison manager faces up to 20 years in prison on the torture conspiracy charges, and a maximum sentence of 20 years on each of the three torture charges. He could face a maximum of 10 years in prison on immigration fraud charges.
The indictment follows the fall of the Assad regime after an offensive led by opposition forces fighting for control of Syria since 2011.
Following the fall of Assad, political prisoners in his regime’s prisons were released en masse, revealing evidence of shocking and disturbing human rights abuses within them.