how did they try him in absentia? I'm pretty certain that's illegal in the united states.
They didn’t.
“Abouammo was arrested in Seattle, Washington, on Nov. 5, 2019, and made his initial federal court appearance in Seattle at 2:00 p.m.on Nov. 6, 2019” [1]. He is the one they left behind.
[1] https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/two-former-twitter-employees-...
https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/trial-ab...