Walid bin Attash, Mustafa al-Hawsawi, and Khalid Sheikh Mohammed are anticipated to present their cases before the military commission at Guantanamo Bay as early as next week.
Prosecutors cited by the New York Times (NYT) claim that rather than going to trial for the death penalty in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, the three defendants have decided to plead guilty to conspiracy charges in exchange for a life sentence.
Since 2003, the defendants have been held in US custody.
In the 9/11 attacks, suicide terrorists took control of planes and crashed them into the World Trade Center Twin Towers, killing close to 3,000 people.
The New York Times claims that Rear Adm. Aaron C. Rugh, the head prosecutor for military commissions, and three of his attorneys signed a letter to the victims’ families that contained rumors of a bargain.
The letter states, “These three accused have agreed to plead guilty to all of the charged offenses, including the murder of the 2,976 people listed in the charge sheet, in exchange for the removal of the death penalty as a possible punishment.”