A married mosque teacher in Washington, DC, will spend a decade behind bars for sending pornographic images to a 15-year-old girl with whom he was “absolutely” infatuated, a judge has ruled.
Seitu Sulayman Kokayi, 30, was sentenced Friday for sending explicit videos and images of himself to the teen, whom he taught the Koran at the First Hijrah Foundation since she was 6 or 7 years old,
the Washington Post reported.
“Your case is an unusual one,” a judge told Kokayi, whose wife attended Friday’s hearing. “You had an absolutely improper infatuation with this child, and you acted inappropriately on it.”
Prosecutors had previously described Kokayi, who also worked as a content developer at the University of Maryland University College at the time of his arrest, as a “wolf in sheep’s clothing.” They said he
preyed on the teen by engaging her in sexually charged video chats and asked her to do the same, which she declined.
Kokayi also sent 16-year-old girls at the school videos of Islamic State fighters and other propaganda, although a judge did not factor that into his sentence, saying the 10-year mandatory minimum he faced was more than adequate, according to the Washington Post.
Kokayi and the teen spoke by phone for more than 32 hours during a three-week period in August 2018, according to court records
obtained by the Fairfax Times. They also had more than 43 conversations over iPhone FaceTime, during which Kokayi exposed himself and masturbated on several occasions, the newspaper reports.
Prosecutors said Kokayi also voiced his support for ISIS by sharing videos with the teen and other students, although his attorney denied that he had any intention to join the militant group.
“These are the very things the founders sought to protect — religious speech and political speech,” attorney Mark Petrovich said. “He’s not espousing terrorism, he’s not espousing violence.”
Kokayi, who sang in Arabic during Friday’s proceedings, apologized for his conduct to his wife, relatives and friends.
“I have many shortcomings and I’ve committed many sins,” he said. “I blame no one but myself.”
Kokayi, who was convicted in April of enticing a minor to engage in sexual conduct and transferring obscene material to a minor, was also sentenced to 20 years of supervised release and is barred from contacting terrorists or terrorist organizations.
nypost.com
