The Somali teen accused of being involved in the highjacking of an American ship is indicted on piracy charges.

Last month, a judge ruled Abdiwali Abdiqadir Muse should be tried in open court despite arguments from his lawyer that he was 15 and should be tried as a juvenile.

Muse is currently being held inside a Manhattan jail.

If convicted on the piracy charges, Muse faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison. He is likely the first person tried on piracy charges in the United States in more than a century.

Prosecutors believe the 18-year-old was the ringleader of the crew that hijacked the Maersk Alabama and held Captain Richard Phillips hostage for five days.

Phillips was freed when Navy SEALS killed three of the hijackers.

(Source: NY1)