(AP) A former New York stock broker who fled his job and family to fight alongside Islamic State militants in Syria, then maintained his allegiance to the extremist group throughout his trial, was sentenced to life in prison on Tuesday.
Ruslan Maratovich Asainov, who served as a sniper and instructor for the Islamic militant group at the height of its power, sat grinning in the Brooklyn courtroom, flashing a thumbs-up and stroking his bushy beard as a judge read out the sentencing.
His own court-appointed attorney, Susan Kellman, declined to ask for a lighter sentence, noting her client was not interested in distancing himself from the Islamic State fighters in exchange for leniency.
