ISIS Beatle dubbed 'Jihadi George' disappears from US prison following life sentence for torture and murder

12 January 2023, 08:48 | Updated: 12 January 2023, 09:24

ISIS Beatle Alexander Kotey has disappeared from all records.
ISIS Beatle Alexander Kotey (main pic) has disappeared from all records at Pennsylvania's Canaan Prison. Top right, El Shafee Elsheikh who was also given a life term. Picture: ITV / Alamy / Alexandria Sheriff's Office

By Danielle DeWolfe

A British Islamic State fighter dubbed one of the 'ISIS Beatles' has vanished from custody in the US after being sentenced to life behind bars for torture and murder.

Alexanda Kotey, 39, labelled 'Jihadi George', no longer appears on US custody records at Pennsylvania's high-security Canaan prison.

Sentenced to life in prison in August after pleading guilty to eight counts of abduction, torture and the beheading of western hostages, his name has now seemingly been scrubbed from Federal Bureau of Prisons records.

The charges relate to his actions in Syria between 2012 and 2015.

Kotey was infamously linked to three other Brits fighting for the terrorist group, namely Aine Davis, El Shafee Elsheikh and Mohammed Emwazi - dubbed 'Jihadi John'.

When searched, Kotey's name is now listed as 'not in BOP custody'.

Alexanda Kotey, 39, has been labelled 'Jihadi George' one of the four British 'ISIS Beatles'
Alexanda Kotey, 39, has been labelled 'Jihadi George' one of the four British 'ISIS Beatles'. Picture: ITV

Read more: Notorious Russian mercenary group claims it has found body of missing British aid worker in Ukraine

Read more: General Armageddon loses job in charge of Russian forces invading Ukraine after just three months

Kotey accepted a plea deal in return for a more lenient sentence which notably included 'cooperation requirements'.

The plea deal also meant he was allowed to serve out his time in Canaan, as opposed to ADX Florence prison in Colorado - nicknamed the 'Alcatraz of the Rockies'.

It remains unknown why Kotey has seemingly vanished from records.

Speaking with the The Scottish Daily Record, BOP spokesperson Donald Murphy confirmed "Alexanda Amon Kotey is not currently in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons."

He noted "several reasons" why an inmate could be listed as such but did not elaborate on Kotey's particular case.

"Inmates who were previously in BOP custody and who have not completed their sentence may be outside BOP custody for a period of time for court hearings, medical treatment or for other reasons," Mr Murphy said.

The Beatle was being held in Canaan penitentiary and is believed to have abducted and killed 27 western hostages.
The Beatle was being held in Canaan penitentiary and is believed to have abducted and killed 27 western hostages. Picture: USP CANAAN

Kotey and the group took more than two dozen Westerners hostage during their stint fighting for ISIS in Syria.

Their 'Beatles' nickname came about due to their distinctive English accents.

Their stint in Syria nearly a decade ago saw the group don masks for the beheadings, parading hostages about in front of the camera in orange jumpsuits.

One such victim was 44-year-old British aid worker David Haines, who was taken hostage and later beheaded on camera by the group in Syria in 2013.

Kotey was eventually captured by Kurdish militia in Syria in 2018, before being handed of to American forces in 2020 and deported to America for trial.

His subsequent trial related to the killings of four American hostages, including journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, alongside aid workers Peter Kassig and Kayla Mueller.

The group are believed to have abducted and killed 27 people.

British aid worker David Haines was taken hostage and beheaded by the group in 2013
British aid worker David Haines was taken hostage and beheaded by the group in 2013. Picture: LBC / Handout

Speaking to The Daily Record, Haines' daughter, 24-year-old Bethany Haines, said she fears the 'Beatle' is "assisting authorities".

"In the past he has been traceable, as we have access to data via the US victim notification scheme, and we at least had the reassurance that he was in a high security facility," she said. 

"I don't want to think that he has managed to negotiate his way into any kind of easy treatment on the basis of him assisting authorities or anything else."

More Latest News

See more More Latest News

Exclusive
Starmer has vowed to resurrect Boris Johnson's 'Levelling Up' policy

Failure to ‘level up’ Britain would be ‘catastrophic’, Wes Streeting admits, as Starmer vows to resurrect Johnson policy

Border Force staff will walk out from April 11

Hundreds of Border Force officers at Heathrow Airport to stage four-day strike

Stephen Bear was ordered to pay Ms Harrison £5,000.

Disgraced reality TV star Stephen Bear ordered to pay £27,000 over revenge porn conviction or face nine months in jail

Sam Bankman-Fried

FTX founder Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years in prison for crypto fraud

Exclusive
Covid no excuse for death of Finley Boden who was murdered by drug-addled parents, child protection chief says

Covid no excuse for death of Finley Boden who was murdered by drug-addled parents, child protection chief says

Israel Palestinians UN Security Council

Russia ‘abolishes’ monitoring of sanctions on North Korea with UN veto

France Valentino

Former Gucci designer Alessandro Michele named Valentino creative director

Know your limits this summer, Brits have been warned

‘Know your limits’: Brits heading to the Euros this summer warned against drinking ‘too much German beer’

Russia Shooting

Russia arrests another suspect in concert hall attack that killed 143

Sam Bankman-Fried has been jailed for 25 years for a $8bn crypto fraud

'Crypto King' Sam Bankman-Fried jailed for 25 years for stealing billions of dollars from his customers

Michael Gove has been urged to 'get on with' passing the rental reforms

Ministers accused of making 'major concessions to landlords' after renters reforms 'watered down'

Supermarket opening times for Easter 2024: Trading hour revealed for Sainsbury's, Asda, Tesco, Morrisons and Aldi

Supermarket opening times for Easter 2024: Trading hours revealed for Sainsbury's, Asda, Tesco, Morrisons and Aldi

It is believed the litter picking tool was mistaken for a firearm, Northumbria Police said

Schools locked down by police after litter picker mistaken for firearm

Lewes prison

Medical incident declared at Lewes prison after several inmates hospitalised with food poisoning

Sandro Tonali

Newcastle United star charged with breaching FA gambling rules 50 times

The protesters staged a bike collision to gain entrance into the department

Pro-Palestine protestors chant 'from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free' as they occupy British Ministry