A Military lawyer for a soldier charged in the Abu Ghraib abuse case testified that a captain at the Baghdad prison said the highest-ranking US military officer in Iraq was present during some ‘‘interrogations and/or allegations of the prisoner abuse,’’ according to a recording of a military hearing obtained by The Washington Post.
The lawyer said he was told that Lt Gen Ricardo Sanchez and other senior military officers were aware of what was taking place on Tier 1A of Abu Ghraib. The lawyer, Capt. Robert Shuck, also said a sergeant at the prison was prepared to testify that intelligence officers told him the abuse of detainees on the cellblock was ‘‘the right thing to do’’. Shuck is assigned to defend Staff Sgt Ivan L. ‘‘Chip’’ Frederick II of the 372nd Military Police Company.
During an April 2 hearing that was open to the public, Shuck said the company commander, Capt. Donald Reese, was prepared to testify in exchange for immunity. The military prosecutor questioned Shuck about what Reese would say under oath. ‘‘Are you saying that Captain Reese is going to testify that General Sanchez was there and saw this going on?’’ asked Capt. John McCabe, the military prosecutor. ‘‘That’s what he told me,’’ Shuck said. ‘‘I am an officer of the court, sir, and I would not lie. I have got two children at home. I’m not going to risk my career.’’
So far, clear evidence has yet to emerge that high-level officers condoned or promoted abusive practices. Officers have blamed the abuse on a handful of rogue officers from the 372nd, a company of US Army reservists based in Cresaptown, Maryland. The general in charge of prisons in Iraq at the time has said that military intelligence officers took control of Abu Ghraib and gave MPs ‘‘ideas’’.
A Defence spokesman referred questions about Sanchez to US military officials in West Asia, cautioning that statements by defence lawyers should be treated with ‘‘appropriate caution’’. Brig Gen Mark Kimmitt, the military spokesman, said Sanchez was unavailable for comment but would respond later. —(LAT-WP)