Maj. Gen. Abed Hamed Mowhoush, shown with his grandson in a family photo
"He treated that general worse than you would treat a dog and he did so knowing he was required to treat the general humanely," Prosecutor Maj. Tiernan Dolan
Interrogator Convicted in Iraqi's Death
FT. CARSON, Colo. — A military jury late Saturday convicted an Army interrogator of negligent homicide in the death of an Iraqi general who had been stuffed face-first into a sleeping bag.
After seven hours of deliberations, the six-officer panel found Chief Warrant Officer Lewis E. Welshofer Jr. guilty of the charge, which carries a maximum sentence of three years in military prison. Had he been convicted of murder, he could have been given a life sentence.
The panel also found Welshofer guilty of dereliction of duty.
Welshofer, 43, is the highest-ranking officer tried on murder charges in a case of detainee abuse in the Bush administration's war on terrorism, human rights monitors say.
Welshofer stood mute in his dark-green uniform as he listened to the verdict, swallowing silently.
Welshofer had interrogated the general several times, once slapping him in the chest, before the interviews turned markedly more violent, according to witnesses at the trial. Iraqi nationals apparently in the employ of the CIA entered the interrogation room Nov. 24 and beat Mowhoush for 30 minutes with rubber hoses and insulation.
Welshofer said he did not control that session, but other witnesses testified that he seemed to be directing the questioning. Mowhoush had to be carried back to his cell.
The next day, Welshofer's team took Mowhoush to the prison roof and pinned him down while the lead interrogator poured water on his face, according to multiple witnesses. Welshofer and another interrogator also repeatedly hit the general's elbows — an action Welshofer has characterized as more like tapping, saying it was intended to be an annoyance.
That night, according to a witness who testified from behind a green tarp, Welshofer talked about the latest regulations from Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, then U.S. commander in Baghdad. The witness, whom an attorney inadvertently implied worked for the CIA, said that Welshofer said "he was pretty sure they were breaking those rules every day."
The next morning, Mowhoush was stuffed into the sleeping bag, and soon died.
Welshofer's sentencing is
expected Monday.
More... Also, keep in mind, General Mowhoush had surrendered.
Maj. Gen. Abed Hamed Mowhoush, shown with his grandson in a family photo
"He treated that general worse than you would treat a dog and he did so knowing he was required to treat the general humanely," Prosecutor Maj. Tiernan Dolan
Interrogator Convicted in Iraqi's Death
FT. CARSON, Colo. — A military jury late Saturday convicted an Army interrogator of negligent homicide in the death of an Iraqi general who had been stuffed face-first into a sleeping bag.
After seven hours of deliberations, the six-officer panel found Chief Warrant Officer Lewis E. Welshofer Jr. guilty of the charge, which carries a maximum sentence of three years in military prison. Had he been convicted of murder, he could have been given a life sentence.
The panel also found Welshofer guilty of dereliction of duty.
Welshofer, 43, is the highest-ranking officer tried on murder charges in a case of detainee abuse in the Bush administration's war on terrorism, human rights monitors say.
Welshofer stood mute in his dark-green uniform as he listened to the verdict, swallowing silently.
Welshofer had interrogated the general several times, once slapping him in the chest, before the interviews turned markedly more violent, according to witnesses at the trial. Iraqi nationals apparently in the employ of the CIA entered the interrogation room Nov. 24 and beat Mowhoush for 30 minutes with rubber hoses and insulation.
Welshofer said he did not control that session, but other witnesses testified that he seemed to be directing the questioning. Mowhoush had to be carried back to his cell.
The next day, Welshofer's team took Mowhoush to the prison roof and pinned him down while the lead interrogator poured water on his face, according to multiple witnesses. Welshofer and another interrogator also repeatedly hit the general's elbows — an action Welshofer has characterized as more like tapping, saying it was intended to be an annoyance.
That night, according to a witness who testified from behind a green tarp, Welshofer talked about the latest regulations from Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, then U.S. commander in Baghdad. The witness, whom an attorney inadvertently implied worked for the CIA, said that Welshofer said "he was pretty sure they were breaking those rules every day."
The next morning, Mowhoush was stuffed into the sleeping bag, and soon died.
Welshofer's sentencing is expected Monday.
More... Also, keep in mind, General Mowhoush had surrendered.
