A former Syrian prison official was convicted Monday by a U.S. federal jury in Los Angeles on charges of torture and immigration fraud, after prosecutors said he oversaw and sometimes personally carried out brutal abuses against prisoners under the now-ousted regime of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Samir Ousman Alsheikh, a former brigadier general who once headed Damascus’ Central Prison, also known as Adra Prison, was found guilty after a nine-day trial of conspiracy to commit torture, immigration-related fraud and three counts of torture, according to the Justice Ministry.
The case marks a historic step toward accountability, with Alsheikh becoming the first Assad-era official to be tried and convicted in a U.S. federal court.
Prosecutors said the 73-year-old ordered and oversaw the torture of political prisoners between 2005 and 2008, including beatings, hanging from ceilings and using devices such as the so-called “Magic Carpet,” which folded victims’ bodies to inflict extreme pain.
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A handout photo shows former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad (right) and Samir Ousman Alsheikh on or around July 25, 2011, when Assad appointed Alsheikh governor of Deir ez-Zor. (US Department of Justice)
He entered the United States in 2020 after lying about his past on his visa application and later tried to become a U.S. citizen, authorities said.
Alsheikh, who was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport in 2024 while trying to board a one-way flight to Beirut, faces up to 20 years in prison on each torture-related charge if convicted at a later date.
“Samir Ousman Alsheikh ordered, directed, and directly participated in horrific torture intended to inflict unbearable mental and physical pain for the purpose of punishing and silencing political dissent,” Tysen Duva, assistant attorney general of the Justice Department’s criminal division, said in a statement.
“For years, he evaded responsibility for his crimes in Syria, including by lying to U.S. immigration authorities in order to stay in the U.S. in hopes of obtaining citizenship. Thanks to the courage and perseverance of the victims and the dedication of Justice Department prosecutors, along with their law enforcement partners, justice has prevailed and Alsheikh can no longer run from his past.”
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A torn portrait of Bashar al-Assad at the presidential palace on December 10, 2024 in Damascus, Syria. (Ali Haj Suleiman/Getty Images)
According to a federal criminal complaint filed in July 2024, Alsheikh was an associate of Maher al-Assad, the younger brother of Bashar al-Assad, who headed the Syrian army’s elite Fourth Division.
He was appointed governor of Deir ez-Zor by Assad in 2011 after anti-government protests that spread across the country during the Arab Spring.
The Syrian Emergency Task Force (SETF), a Washington-based advocacy group, assisted investigators in bringing the former regime official to justice. The organization first identified Alsheikh in Los Angeles through a tip and conducted its own verification using open source material and leaked data from the Syrian government.
It then alerted U.S. authorities and worked with the FBI and Justice Department to build the case, including connecting investigators with key witnesses who testified about abuses at Adra prison. According to SETF, it pushed for allegations of torture rather than just immigration violations to ensure broader accountability.
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Syrian lawmaker and opposition activist Mamoun al-Homsi is pictured in his office in Damascus, August 7, 2001. (Khaled Al-Hariri/Reuters)
Al-Homsi said that while previous prison heads largely adhered to prison rules and did not target inmates for their political views, Alsheikh’s arrival in 2005 marked a shift.
“The most severe torture for me was not what was done to me physically, but what was done to others on my behalf,” al-Homsi said.
Police stand at the gate of the Damascus Central Prison in the Adra area near the Syrian capital Damascus on May 28, 2010. (Khaled al-Hariri/Reuters)
“Khaled Abdul Malek had gotten so close to Mamoun al-Homsi, so he told him about this plan and told him not to eat anything from anyone, to the point where Mamoun al-Homsi would go to the trash if there was anything and wash whatever was left,” Moustafa said.
Malek refused Alsheikh’s demand to poison the prominent political figure, which led to him being placed in Wing 13, a notorious part of the prison where people were tortured.
“Khaled Malik had broken his back at the time,” Moustafa said, adding that he arrived in court with a stick and could barely walk.
Al-Homsi said he survived on olive pits and lost more than 60 pounds. He was released in 2006 and later fled to Canada.
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Al-Homsi called the verdict a signal that justice, although long delayed, is finally taking hold, an outcome he described as essential for the future of a free Syria.
