By Le Figaro with AFP
Published update
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American justice demanded Monday February 13 the death penalty against the Uzbek Sayfullo Saipov, who had killed eight people in New York in 2017 on behalf of the Islamic State group, a first for a federal trial under the mandate of Joe Biden who had yet defended its abolition at the national level.
In front of a jury in Manhattan federal court, government prosecutor Amanda Houle claimed that she “ask(ait) to impose a death sentence, not because it is easy, but because it is the appropriate sentence in this case.” “The Just Punishment”she hammered. “Sayfullo Saipov carried out a cruel terrorist attack in this city, on behalf of IS; he killed eight people, he tried to kill many more, he is proud of what he did”thundered the representative of the American public ministry.
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On January 26, this 35-year-old Uzbek had already been found guilty of aggravated murder and “supporting a terrorist group” by the jury of this same federal court. It is therefore a second trial with the same 12 jurors who must decide, unanimously, the fate of Sayfullo Saipov, present in the courtroom, seated between his lawyers, dark jacket over white shirt, long black beard and black hair. On the benches, families of victims or survivors of the attack of October 31, 2017 also took place on Monday.
“He did not give up jihad”
On Halloween 2017, Sayfullo Saipov drove a pickup truck into passers-by on a bike path along the Hudson River in Manhattan. A deadly ride that left eight dead, including five Argentines and a Belgian, and many injured. Prosecutor Houle recalled that Sayfullo Saipov, who had pledged allegiance to IS, never expressed remorse, that“he has not abandoned jihad (…) remains committed to IS” to be present “always a danger”even in prison.
The defense for its part asked the jury to “stop the death spiral”. If sentenced to the death penalty, Sayfullo Saipov could appeal and could not be executed anyway under the moratorium on federal executions decreed in July 2021 by Joe Biden’s Minister of Justice, Merrick Garland.
