A federal judge sentenced Akayed Ullah, also known as the Port Authority Bomber, to life in prison on Thursday.
“This was a calculated, premeditated decision to kill as many people as you could,” Judge Richard J. Sullivan said. “All in the name of an organization that is dedicated to spreading terror.”
Ullah injured himself and three others with a homemade bomb in 2017 when he detonated it inside the Port Authority Bus Terminal.
Federal prosecutors had asked the judge to impose a life sentence for Ullah, who was convicted in 2018 on charges including using a weapon of mass destruction, providing material support to the Islamic State, and bombing a public transportation system.
Ullah pleaded not guilty to the attacks.
The bombing was the first attempted act of terrorism in New York City since September 11, 2001, and was one of several “lone wolf” attacks inspired by a foreign terrorist group in recent years.
The Bangladeshi national reportedly became radicalized in New York, attending a radical mosque in Brooklyn that was once funded by the Saudi government.
Lawyers for Ullah asked that he receive 35 years in prison, the minimum sentence according to sentencing guidelines for his crimes.
Prosecutors said Ullah did not deserve to get off lightly, arguing that he sought to cause the maximum amount of damage by carrying out his attack during the morning rush hour.
In addition to his life imprisonment, Ullah was also sentenced to a life of supervised release.
The case is United States v. Akayed Ullah No.18-cr-16 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
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