It is alleged that the Spc. Sgt. Jeremy N. Morlock, 22, along with 3 other US soldiers led by Staff Sgt. Calvin R Gibbs, killed Afghan civilians as a sport and collected body parts as trophies in yet another one of the most shocking stories told on assaults committed by US military personnel.
The allegations detail some of the cruelest acts carried out by US troops since their invasion of Afghanistan began in 2001.
Investigators at a pretrial hearing in a military courtroom in Washington heard Morlock, a member of the 5th Stryker Combat Brigade, admitting his involvement in the killings that took place in Afghanistan’s Kandahar province between January and May, The Washington Post reported.
Morlock sought to shift the blame for the killings to his senior in command, Gibbs, claiming that it was his idea and that he had planted the thought of killing innocent Afghans as a “sport.”
Morlock is also quoted as saying in a press-release statement that “Gibbs had pure hatred for all Afghanis and constantly referred to them as savages.”
The defense attorney for the American soldier has tried to acquit his client, arguing that the heavy medication he was taking for a brain injury in May 2010 prompted him to offer the confessions at his pretrial hearing. Morlock’s statements, meanwhile, are considered as key evidence that could prove vital in legal cases against his fellow co-defendants.
However, the notion that Morlock was influenced by medications while making his statements was rebutted by Anderson D Wagner, a special agent with the US Army’s Criminal Investigation Command. He emphasized that Morlock’s statements were verified up by other members of his unit and that he did not believe Morlock was unduly influenced by medications.
Morlock and the other US soldiers charged in the killings are facing potential death sentences for war crimes if convicted. The ongoing hearing and the subsequent ones scheduled for Morlock’s accomplices will determine whether the cases will proceed to a court martial.
In a related development, Australia’s chief military prosecutor has said that 3 Australian soldiers will face charges, including manslaughter, over a raid they carried out in Afghanistan in which five Afghan children were killed.
Source: Press TV