Family of Salford man Alan Henning to come face to face with one of murdering 'Beatles' today
29.04.2022 - 09:59
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
A British terrorist who tortured and killed Western hostages in Syria will come to face to face with his victims' families as he is sentenced in a US court today.
Alexanda Amon Kotey, a 38-year-old Islam convert originally from west London, was one of four so-called Islamic State militants nicknamed ‘The Beatles’ by their captives due to their British accents. The group brutality killed their victims in the mid 2010s.
Kotey may be ordered to spend the rest of his life behind bars when he is sentenced at the federal court in Alexandria, Virginia. He pleaded guilty to a host of charges relating to US victims only, although the families of other murdered hostages, including British humanitarians David Haines and Salford's Alan Henning, are expected to read impact statements to the court before sentencing.
READ MORE: Government signals end of ‘no-go areas’ inside jails that allowed Arena bomb plotter to form a jihadi gang behind bars
Mr Henning, a dad-of-two, was an Eccles taxi driver turned humanitarian aid worker when he was kidnapped while delivering aid to Syria in 2013 and became the fourth Western hostage killed by Islamic State 11 months later. The brutal murder was revealed in a beheading video on October 3, 2014.
He has been hailed as 'Salford's finest son' in the years since his death and a 'local hero'. It was announced 18 months ago that Salford Western Gateway will be renamed Alan Henning Way in his honour.
Kotey’s co-defendant, El Shafee Elsheikh, is also expected to be present ahead of his sentencing hearing later in the year after he was convicted this month of his role in the murder plot. The terror cell also comprised ringleader Mohammed Emwazi, known as Jihadi John, who was killed in a drone strike