The death of an American oil worker in Egypt this summer had originally been attributed to the tragic aftermath of a violent carjacking.
Now the Egyptian terrorist group which last month pledged allegiance to ISIS, is claiming that it killed Henderson.
An official ISIS Web Forum on Sunday posted images of William Henderson’s passport and work identification.
The group that now calls itself the Islamic State in Sinai and was formerly known as Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, claimed responsibility for the 58 year-old Henderson’s August 6 death.
The message, posted on the organization’s official Twitter account, said: “We take responsibility for the killing of the American oil expert William Henderson in the Western Desert.”
Henderson’s employer, the Houston, Texas-based Apache Corp., issued a statement on Monday, Dec. 2. It said the “tragic carjacking incident this past August involving our colleague Bill Henderson is still under investigation by the U.S. government. Our thoughts and prayers remain with the Henderson family.”
An online obituary for Henderson explained that he “died suddenly while working in Karama, Egypt.”
The northern portion of the Sinai Peninsula has been under a state of emergency since the terrorist group attacked an army checkpoint in October. That attack resulted in the death of 31 Egyptian soldiers.
The slain Henderson worked for Apache for 28 years. He lived most of his life in Oklahoma.
