Sheinbein’s sentence includes time already served, and he could be free in 14 years with good behavior. Prosecutor Hadass Naor said Sheinbein would be eligible for furloughs in six years.
Sheinbein fled to Israel days after Tello’s burned corpse was found in the garage of an unoccupied house in a Maryland suburb in September 1997.
Though he had never visited Israel before fleeing there, he claimed Israeli citizenship through his father, who was born in pre-state Israel.
Israeli courts upheld the claim and barred his extradition to the United States in accordance with existing Israeli law against handing over citizens who committed crimes abroad. The ruling led to a long extradition battle between Israel and the United States that strained political relations.
At the height of the dispute, some U.S. lawmakers had threatened to press Congress to cut Israel’s nearly $3 billion in annual aid if Sheinbein was not handed over.
The case spurred the Knesset to pass a law in April making it easier to extradite Israeli citizens charged with committing crimes abroad.
Under the new law, those who hold Israeli citizenship but are not residents of the country can be extradited, while residents will be tried in the Jewish state.
Sheinbein’s alleged co-conspirator, Aaron Benjamin Needle, hanged himself in a Maryland prison in April 1998, just days before his trial was scheduled to begin.