Captain Richard Phillips surrendered himself to protect his crew, while the remaining sailors disabled the ship systems and hid deep inside the sweltering engine room.
However, medical assessments and court investigations determined that Muse was an adult, allowing prosecutors to move forward with a federal trial in the Southern District Court of New York. Because historical anti-piracy statutes were rarely used in modern legal structures, prosecutors charged Muse with: Piracy under the law of nations Ship hijacking Hostage-taking Kidnapping Armed assault abduwali muse
: A thesis or paper from Tilburg University Examining the Prosecution of pirates operating off the Somali coast, specifically citing Muse's 2010 guilty plea. Official Government & Court Documents Captain Richard Phillips surrendered himself to protect his
Following the rescue, Muse was arrested by the U.S. military and flown directly to New York City to face criminal prosecution. His arrival at the federal plaza sparked intense media scrutiny, particularly due to his small stature and youthful appearance, which led his mother to publicly claim he was a minor coerced into piracy. Official Government & Court Documents Following the rescue,
On April 12, 2009, with Phillips’s life in imminent danger, Navy SEAL snipers on the fantail of the Bainbridge fired simultaneously, killing the three pirates holding Phillips. Muse, who had been on the Bainbridge attempting to negotiate, was taken into custody.
Armed with AK-47 assault rifles, Muse’s crew managed to scale the side of the massive cargo vessel despite evasive maneuvers by the ship’s crew.