The case was thrown out for a “lack of evidence.” Wink-wink. “Iraqi sniper who shot dead two Marines freed after serving two-and-a-half years for each killing,” by Daniel Bates for the Daily Mail, August 21:
They were told that so long as a U.S. marine was still in Iraq, he would remain in jail.
But now, just five years after shooting dead two American soldiers, an Iraqi sniper has been released from prison – and walked away a free man.
Compounding the families” agony was that the announcement came shortly before the fifth anniversary of the killing.
It was only by sending a letter to senior commanders that they revealed Muhammad Awwad Ahmad had been set free ten months earlier, in November last year.
The disclosure means he could be back on the streets in Iraq shooting dead more people – while the families of Captain John McKenna and Lance Corporal Michael Glover continue to grieve.
Ahmad shot dead Capt McKenna, 30, a state trooper who volunteered for service in Iraq, as his unit was patrolling the Iraqi city of Fallujah on August 16, 2006.
Lance Cpl Glover, 28, was the point man and was mortally wounded as he crossed a street.
Capt McKenna ran to help him but he was shot as he tried to pull him to cover.
The sniper was identified soon after as Ahmad because of his big ears and he was jailed amid promises from the U.S. military that he would see proper justice.
Now that has been exposed as a sham after he was freed serving what amounts to two-and-a-half years for each of the hero soldier’s lives. […]
They only found out by sending a letter on May 16 to then Defence Secretary Robert Gates in which the elder McKenna inquired what had happened to Ahmad. […]
Nearly three months went by before the response landed on his doormat on August 4 from William Lietzau, deputy assistant secretary of defence for rule of law and detainee policy.
According to the Daily News it read: “˜Consistent with our legal obligations under (the) Iraq Security Agreement, Ahmad was transferred to Government of Iraq control in June 2010 pursuant to an Iraqi criminal warrant. … Ahmad’s case was reviewed by an Iraqi court, and he was ordered released on October 25, 2010, because of a lack of evidence.’.
The families of both men were horrified and pointed out that Ahmad’s distinctive physical appearance – notably his big ears – made identifying him straightforward.
This allowed the slain men’s fellow Marines to track him down after the killings – and haul him in for the justice he denied his victims….