{"id":187895,"date":"2016-02-08T05:55:25","date_gmt":"2016-02-08T05:55:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/4cd.e16.myftpupload.com\/?p=187895"},"modified":"2016-02-08T05:55:25","modified_gmt":"2016-02-08T05:55:25","slug":"ghanaian-born-londoner-joins-isis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/2016\/02\/ghanaian-born-londoner-joins-isis\/","title":{"rendered":"Ghanaian born Londoner joins ISIS"},"content":{"rendered":"
A member of the Islamic State cell that oversaw the detention and beheading of western hostages in Syria has been identified as a 32-year-old Londoner, the Guardian has confirmed.<\/p>\n
Alexanda Kotey, a convert to Islam who grew up in west London, has been named as part of the British group nicknamed \u201cthe Beatles\u201d, which included Mohammed Emwazi.<\/p>\n
Emwazi\u2019s kidnap gang has overseen the videoed beheadings of victims including the British aid workers Alan Henning and David Haines, and the US journalists Steven Sotloff and James Foley.<\/p>\n
Kotey is described as of Ghanaian and Greek-Cypriot background and his whereabouts are unknown. His fellow west Londoner Emwazi was killed in a drone strike in November.<\/p>\n
Another west Londoner, Aine Davis, 31, has also been confirmed as part of the cell. Emwazi, Kotey and Davis, a former drug dealer who went to Syria in 2013, were friends in west London and attended the same mosque.<\/p>\n
Davis was detained in Turkey last November on suspicion of planning attacks in Istanbul similar to those in Paris that targeted the Bataclan theatre, the Stade de France and cafes and restaurants.<\/p>\n
A spokesman for the Home Office in London would \u201cneither confirm nor deny\u201d that Kotey and Davis were members of Emwazi\u2019s group.<\/p>\n
The Washington Post and Buzzfeed identified Kotey earlier on Sunday, citing a US intelligence official. ITV News also named Kotey, as well as confirming that Davis had been part of the terror cell. The Guardian has independently verified the names.<\/p>\n