Three U.S. Navy Seals Charged With Assaulting an Accused Terrorist-Truth!
Summary of eRumor:
This forwarded email begins with a statement of disbelief over a Fox News report about three U.S. Navy Seals who are reported to have captured a suspected terrorist in Iraq. According to the story, the prisoner claimed that he was punched by his captors and now formal charges have been brought against the Seals.
The Truth:
The cases against three U.S. Navy Seals, Matthew McCabe, Jonathan Keefe and Julio Huertas is true according to a November 24, 2009 Fox News exclusive report called “Navy Seals Face Assault Charges for Capturing Most-Wanted Terrorist.” Click for story
According to the article, suspected terrorist, Ahmed Hashim Abed, was wanted by military authorities in Iraq for his connection with a 2004 insurgent attack in Fallujah that resulted in the murder and mutilation of four Blackwater USA security guards. Abed, was dubbed with the military code-name “Objective Amber” after intelligence sources identified him as the ringleader and mastermind behind of the attack. The suspected terrorist evaded capture for sometime until September 3, 2009, when the three US Navy Seals apprehended him.
After his detention at Camp Baharia, a US Marine Facility near Fallujah in Iraq, Abed filed charges claiming “his rights were violated when he was punched in the mouth by his Navy SEAL captors.”
The article said that the US Navy Seals “refused non-judicial punishment — called an admiral’s mast — and have requested a trial by court-martial.”
All Three Servicemen Found Not Guilty
On May 6, 2010, Fox news reported that a Virginia military jury found U.S. Navy SEAL Matthew McCabe “not guilty Thursday on all charges he punched an Iraqi suspected in the 2004 killings of four U.S. contractors in Fallujah.” Click for story.
On April 23, 2010, Fox News said in an update that “After a daylong trial and fewer than two hours considering the evidence, Navy Judge Cmdr. Tierny Carlos found Petty Officer 2nd Class Jonathan Keefe of Yorktown, Virginia, not guilty of dereliction of duty.” The verdict came a day after fellow SEAL, Petty Officer 1st Class Julio Huertas, of Blue Island, Illinois, was found not guilty of similar charges. A trial against the third and final SEAL, Petty Officer Second Class Matthew McCabe, is scheduled for May 3, 2010 in Norfolk, Virginia. Click for Fox New story
updated 05/06/10