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Sayfullo Saipov, the man convicted of killing eight people in an attack on a Manhattan bike path in 2017, was spared the death penalty on Monday after a federal jury deadlocked on whether he should be executed.
As a result, Saipov will be sentenced to life in prison without parole. A unanimous decision had been required under federal law for a death sentence, which prosecutors had sought.
Saipov is expected to be housed at Colorado’s Supermax facility, the most secure federal prison.
The 35-year-old Uzbek national had been convicted in January of murder with a goal of joining ISIS, a group the United States designates a “terrorist” organization. His jury was reconvened to consider Saipov’s punishment.
Saipov’s case is the first federal death penalty trial since President Joe Biden took office in 2021 after pledging during his campaign to abolish capital punishment.
“In the end, Saipov’s actions have highlighted one of the pillars of the rule of law in this country: the right to a full and fair public trial,” Damian Williams, the top federal prosecutor in Manhattan, said in a statement after the verdict.
