The ex-chief of a notorious prison under former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is accused of torturing political dissidents and other prisoners in order to deter opposition to the Assad regime.
A federal grand jury in Los Angeles has charged Samir Ousman Alsheikh with multiple counts of torture and other charges, authorities announced on Thursday.
A superseding indictment returned on Thursday adds three new counts of torture and a count of conspiracy to commit torture to the charges already faced by the former official.
Alsheikh, 72, was apprehended and detained in July at Los Angeles International Airport on charges of visa fraud and attempted naturalization fraud, the Department of Homeland Security said. He had purchased a one-way ticket to depart Los Angeles for Beirut, Lebanon on July 10.
Alsheikh allegedly concealed his employment at the prison—and involvement in harming prisoners—when he applied for U.S. citizenship in 2023, according to a statement the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). He “made similar false statements” when applying for a visa to enter the United States and obtain a green card in 2020, according to the DHS.
Court documents show that Alsheikh ran Damascus Central Prison from approximately 2005 to 2008. At the prison, known colloquially as Adra Prison, Alsheikh allegedly ordered those working under him to inflict physical and psychological pain on prisoners, including those incarcerated for political reasons.
“Our client vehemently denies these politically motivated and false accusations,” his lawyer, Nina Marino, told AP in an emailed statement.
In 2008, the U.S. State Department released a report in which it warned of worsening human rights abuses in Syria and alleged that members of the country’s security forces arrested and imprisoned people in lengthy pretrial and incommunicado detention, as well as torturing and physically abusing prisoners and detainees.
Alsheikh would order prisoners to the “punishment wing” to be suspended from the ceiling by their arms and whipped, the Department of Homeland Security said in the statement. Prisoners would also be placed in a torture device dubbed the “flying carpet,” in which prisoners would be folded in half at the waist. This resulted in extreme pain and sometimes fractured spines.
“The allegations in this superseding indictment of grave human rights abuses are chilling,” said U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada.
The former government official held various positions within the Syrian police and state security apparatus, and was associated with the Syrian Ba'ath Party that had ruled the country since 1963.
He was appointed governor of the Deir Ez-Zour province by Assad in 2011.
Alsheikh emigrated to the United States in 2020 and applied for citizenship in 2023. When he applied to become a naturalized citizen, he provided a Lexington, South Carolina address as his most recent residence.
“The allegations in this superseding indictment reveal unconscionable crimes and a clear violation of human rights,” said Assistant Director Chad Yarbrough of the FBI Criminal Investigative Division.
Alsheikh faces 100 years in prison if convicted on all charges. His attorney did not reply to The Epoch Times’ request for comment.
Syria has been engulfed in a civil war since mid-2012.
The Syrian government led by Assad fell amid a rebel offensive last Sunday after a 50-year rule by the Assad family, with the former president fleeing to Russia, where he was granted asylum.
