US Soldier Convicted Of Abuse Sent Back To Iraq
Posted: Fri Nov 03, 2006 4:52 pm
NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- A U.S. military policeman convicted of dereliction of duty and aggravated assault in the Abu Graib prison scandal has been ordered back to Iraq, Time reported on its Web site Thursday.
Sgt. Santos Cardona, 32, served as a military dog handler at the prison in 2003 and 2004. Photographs showed Cardona using a dog to threaten Iraqis. Prosecutors had demanded prison time, but a military judge instead imposed a fine and reduction in rank. Cardona was also required to serve 90 days of hard labor at Fort Bragg, N.C.
U.S. Army spokesman Maj. James Crabtree was quoted as saying that Cardona is a military policeman whose "unit happens to be deployed to Iraq, so he went with them." Crabtree said that the commander overseeing the transfer of Cardona and other members of his unit said "there were no issues associated with (Cardona's new) deployment."
Cardona, even though the military judge ordered a reduction in rank following his court martial, has since regained his previous rank as sergeant, Crabtree told Time.
The report cited a close friend of Cardona as saying that the soldier is fearful that he and comrades could become targets for terrorists in Iraq.
Cardona appears in at least one al-Qaida propaganda video depicting the abuse, Time said.
http://www.nasdaq.com/aspxcontent/NewsS ... 000039.htm
Sgt. Santos Cardona, 32, served as a military dog handler at the prison in 2003 and 2004. Photographs showed Cardona using a dog to threaten Iraqis. Prosecutors had demanded prison time, but a military judge instead imposed a fine and reduction in rank. Cardona was also required to serve 90 days of hard labor at Fort Bragg, N.C.
U.S. Army spokesman Maj. James Crabtree was quoted as saying that Cardona is a military policeman whose "unit happens to be deployed to Iraq, so he went with them." Crabtree said that the commander overseeing the transfer of Cardona and other members of his unit said "there were no issues associated with (Cardona's new) deployment."
Cardona, even though the military judge ordered a reduction in rank following his court martial, has since regained his previous rank as sergeant, Crabtree told Time.
The report cited a close friend of Cardona as saying that the soldier is fearful that he and comrades could become targets for terrorists in Iraq.
Cardona appears in at least one al-Qaida propaganda video depicting the abuse, Time said.
http://www.nasdaq.com/aspxcontent/NewsS ... 000039.htm