Six Marines Charged With Criminal Abuse in Iraq

The Marine Corps on Thursday filed criminal abuse charges against six Marines from Camp Pendleton, three of whom already had been charged with murder in the death of an Iraqi man in a separate incident.

Lance Cpl. Saul H. Lopezromo, Pfc. Derek I. Lewis and Lance Cpl. Henry D. Lever were charged with assaulting an Iraqi civilian April 10 in Hamandiya, west of Baghdad.

Also charged with assault were Sgt. Lawrence G. Hutchins III, Cpl. Trent D. Thomas, and Lance Cpl. Jerry E. Shumate Jr. Hutchins, Thomas and Shumate also face charges of murder, kidnapping and conspiracy in connection with an April 26 incident in Hamandiya and are being held in the base brig.

The Marine Corps did not release details on the alleged April 10 incident. Hutchins is charged with assaulting three civilians, the others with assaulting one. An officer also may be charged. The allegation was uncovered as part of the investigation into the murder case.

“The Marine Corps takes allegations of wrongdoing by Marines very seriously and is committed to thoroughly investigating such allegations,” Marine officials said in a statement released at Camp Pendleton.

The six Marines charged Thursday were assigned to 2nd Platoon, Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division. The battalion is in the process of returning from Iraq.

Eight members of the platoon are charged with the April 26 killing of an Iraqi man, Hashim Ibrahim Awad, who allegedly was dragged from his home and shot without provocation. The troops had been searching for an insurgent, and after finding his home empty, they went next door and pulled out Awad, court documents said.

The eight then allegedly placed an AK-47 and a shovel near the body to make it look as though Awad was an insurgent caught planting a roadside bomb.

The latest charges come as the Naval Criminal Investigative Service continues to look into the killing of 24 Iraqis by Marines with the 3rd Battalion, 1st Regiment, in the Euphrates River city of Haditha in November.

Investigators have concluded that the Marines killed the civilians without provocation and should face murder charges, although charges have not yet been filed.