Osama bin Laden's son-in-law sentenced to life in prison

New York (CNN) -- Sulaiman Abu Ghaith, Osama bin Laden's son-in-law, was sentenced to life in prison Tuesday, said Jerika Richardson, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan.

In March, he was found guilty of helping al Qaeda terrorists conspire to kill Americans and providing material support to terrorists.

At his trial, federal prosecutors said the Kuwaiti cleric played a crucial role as the organization's principal mouthpiece and recruiter, helping "restore al Qaeda's trove of new terrorists" as deadly missions turned its members into martyrs.

"He was more than just Usama bin Laden's propaganda minister. Within hours after the devastating 9/11 attacks, Abu Ghayth was using his position in al Qaeda's homicidal hierarchy to persuade others to pledge themselves to al Qaeda in the cause of murdering more Americans," Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said in a prepared statement after the guilty verdict was announced.

Abu Ghaith was flown to the United States a year ago from Jordan and charged with conspiring to kill Americans.