The scrawny Somali charged with piracy against a US cargo ship has been surviving on fruit and vegetables because he’s afraid to eat the mystery meat served in jail.
Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse has never before seen the grub inmates are served at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in downtown Manhattan, and is worried it may contain pork, which is prohibited by Islam.
“He’s hungry,” said his lawyer, Philip Weinstein. “He obviously knows there’s certain things he can eat, but he’s unfamiliar with some of the protein. It’s clearly not fish, which is a primary part of his diet in Somalia.”
The buccaneer — who prosecutors say is 18 years old but whose mom claims is 16 — also “obviously misses his parents and wants to talk to them,” Weinstein said after meeting with his client.
“He feels isolated, lonely, scared and confused.”