WAYCROSS, Ga. – The mother of one of three U.S. Army sergeants killed in a drone attack in Jordan earlier this year said she regained her hope for justice following the arrests of two men charged in connection with the attack.
On Monday, the Justice Department said two men, including a dual Iranian American citizen, have been charged with conspiring to export sensitive technology to Iran that was used in the drone attack that killed Sgt. William Jerome Rivers, Sgt. Breonna Moffett, and Sgt. Kennedy Sanders. All three of them were from Georgia.
The arrests came after an FBI investigation traced the drone’s navigation system to an Iranian company. Prosecutors allege that this company received parts and technology through a co-conspirator.
RELATED | ‘Waycross is suffering today’: Community mourning after US soldier from Georgia dies in Jordan drone attack | Enemy drone that killed US troops in Jordan was mistaken for a US drone, preliminary report suggests
Oneida Sanders, mother of Kennedy Sanders, who was from Waycross, shared her emotional journey since the attack.
“It’s almost a year later now,” Oneida Oliver-Sanders said. “I kind of felt like things would be calming down some by now, but it’s still, every day, it seems like it’s a different experience. And we’re still experiencing a lot of firsts.”
The Sanders family received a call about two people being arrested right before their first Christmas without Kennedy.
“Well, the FBI agents who are involved in the investigation, they did call us and give us a heads up before it hit the news,” she said. “They didn’t want that to be the first time we saw it. So, you know, he just kind of briefed us and explained to us what the charges were, who the people are, who they call, and what their involvement was in the attack. So initially, I really didn’t have, like, a big reaction to it. I was just really taking it all in trying to figure out what does this mean, but it did give me confidence to know that they are making sure that everyone who’s involved will be brought to justice. So they have assured us that it’s still an ongoing investigation, and they are pursuing everyone who is involved in it.”
MORE | ‘She was serving our country’: Community pays respects to Army Sergeant Kennedy Sanders
When asked if she ever thought arrests would be made, Oneida Sanders admitted she didn’t have high expectations.
“To be honest with you, I didn’t have an expectation for any arrest to be made, because it seems like these terrorist networks are so widespread,” she said. “Whenever you get rid of one or two, then 1,000 more pop up. So I really didn’t have a lot of expectation as far as that’s concerned.”
MORE | Hundreds come out to honor fallen soldier Kennedy Sanders as she is brought home to Waycross
Even though it doesn’t bring Kennedy back, her mother said she remains confident that justice will be served and everyone involved will be held accountable.
“They took three people away from their family. And not only did they take the people away, they took away my ability to have grandchildren from Kennedy,” Oneida Sanders said. “I can never see her be married. Walk down the aisle. She can’t pursue her dreams of wanting to travel the world, all these things that they took away, besides taking away Kennedy. And also, they took away a sense of security, because one of the people they call is from the United States, and was living in Boston, Massachusetts, living a regular family life, you know, with children going to school, working every day, and so that really set me on the edge.”
The family plans to hold a 5K in Kennedy’s honor on Jan. 25, 2025, right before the first anniversary of the attack.