The two men appeared in court in Alexandria, Virginia, just outside of Washington, before Judge Thomas Selby Ellis III. They were wearing dark green jumpsuits and face masks, and both men wore long beards. Mr Kotey had a closely shaved head, while Mr Elsheikh’s hair had grown long and was kept in a bun. Dennis Fitzpatrick, an assistant US attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia, represented the prosecution. He told the court the prosecution had amassed more than 5,900 pages of evidence as well as 27 discs and hard drives of material. He said most of the evidence had already been handed over to the defence and the remainder would be ready in the next "3 to 4 weeks".