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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings, Torture and Big Money |
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November 14th, 2006 - Camp
Pendleton Marine Pleads not Guilty in Iraqi Murder Case |
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Camp Pendleton Marine Pleads
not Guilty in Iraqi Murder Case By Thomas Watkins Associated Press Tue, Nov. 14, 2006 Camp Pendleton, Calif. - A
Marine charged with kidnapping and murdering an Iraqi man in a town west of
Baghdad entered not guilty pleas at his arraignment Tuesday. Cpl. Trent Thomas, 24,
belonged to a squad of seven Marines and a Navy corpsman who were accused of
kidnapping a 52-year-old man, taking him to a roadside hole, shooting him and
then trying to cover the incident up. Thomas is charged with
kidnap, murder, conspiracy, making a false official statement, larceny and
housebreaking in the April 26 death of Hashim Ibrahim Awad in Hamdania. He is
also charged with assault in a separate incident involving a different
individual that was uncovered during the probe into Awad's death. Thomas spoke to confirm his
identity and answer brief questions from the judge. He spoke in a loud and
clear voice to confirm his not guilty pleas, which were entered through his
military defense attorney, Maj. Haythan Faraj. It was the first court
appearance for Thomas, who is from the St. Louis area. He was on his second
combat tour in Iraq when the incident occurred. Of the seven other troops in
the case, two junior Marines and the corpsman made deals where they pleaded
guilty to reduced charges in return for giving testimony about the incident
and other charges being dropped. A fourth member of the squad has made a similar
deal and is due in court next week. Some of the testimony from
those men singled out Thomas' actions the night of April 26. The Navy medic,
Petty Officer 3rd Class Melson Bacos, testified Thomas fired several rounds
into the victim's chest. Victor Kelley, a civilian
attorney who represents Thomas, said in an interview that his client would
eventually be found not guilty but acknowledged that the testimony makes
defending the case more problematic. A trial date was set for
March 12. The case continues this week
when two of the Marines who made plea deals are sentenced. © 2006 AP Wire and wire
service sources. All Rights Reserved. External link:
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/breaking_news/16010898.htm |