[R-G] Blackwater Destroyed Evidence Related To Its September Massacre in Baghdad

[Richard Menec]

http://www.salon.com/wires/ap/2008/01/12/D8U4E4E01_blackwater_prosecutions/index.html

FBI Finds Blackwater Trucks Patched

By LARA JAKES JORDAN and MATT APUZZO Associated Press Writer

Jan 12th, 2008 | WASHINGTON -- Blackwater Worldwide repaired and repainted 
its trucks immediately after a deadly September shooting in Baghdad, making 
it difficult to determine whether enemy gunfire provoked the attack, 
according to people familiar with the government's investigation of the 
incident.

Damage to the vehicles in the convoy has been held up by Blackwater as proof 
that its security guards were defending themselves against an insurgent 
ambush when they fired into a busy intersection, leaving 17 Iraqi civilians 
dead.

U.S. military investigators initially found "no enemy activity involved" and 
the Iraqi government concluded the shootings were unprovoked.

The repairs essentially destroyed evidence that Justice Department 
investigators hoped to examine in a criminal case that has drawn worldwide 
attention. The Sept. 16 shooting has strained U.S. relations with the Iraqi 
government, which wants Blackwater expelled from the country. It also has 
become a flash point in the debate over whether contractors are immune from 
legal consequences for their actions in a war zone.

Blackwater's four armored vehicles were repaired or repainted within days of 
the shooting, and before FBI teams went to Baghdad to collect evidence, 
people close to the case said. The work included repairs to a damaged 
radiator that Blackwater says is central to its defense.

The damage and subsequent repairs were described to The Associated Press by 
five people familiar with the case who discussed it in separate interviews 
over the past month. All spoke on condition of anonymity because of the 
sensitivity of the case.

The repair work creates a hurdle for prosecutors as they consider building a 
case against any of the 19 guards in the Sept. 16 convoy. It also makes it 
harder for Blackwater to prove its innocence as it faces a grand jury 
investigation and multiple lawsuits over the shooting. The company is the 
target, too, of an unrelated investigation into whether its contractors 
smuggled weapons into Iraq.

Blackwater spokeswoman Anne Tyrrell said any repairs "would have been done 
at the government's direction." Blackwater's contract with the State 
Department requires that the company maintain its vehicles and keep them on 
the road.

The State Department would not comment on whether it ordered the repairs to 
the vehicles involved in the shooting.

Blackwater's chief executive, Erik Prince, has pointed to the damaged trucks 
to counter accusations that his contractors acted improperly.

In interviews this fall, he said three of Blackwater's armored vehicles were 
struck by gunfire and that the radiator from one was "shot out and disabled" 
during the shooting in Baghdad's Nisoor Square. An early two-page State 
Department report supports Prince's statements. The report noted the 
Blackwater command vehicle was "disabled during the attack" and had to be 
towed.

Prince has indicated he expects the FBI investigation to clear his company. 
Yet people close to the case say the vehicles and radiator alone probably 
will not be enough to do that because repairing the trucks made it difficult 
for investigators to say whether the convoy was fired on - or not.

As for the radiator, investigators have verified that it was damaged. But 
it, too, was repaired before the FBI arrived two weeks after the shooting.

No bullets were found inside the radiator to prove it had been shot, as 
opposed to being broken during routine use. That makes it hard for 
scientists to say for certain what caused the damage or when, according to 
those close to the case.

The preliminary State Department report noted "superficial damage" to the 
vehicles; and photographs exist showing bullet damage. People who have seen 
the photos said there are no time stamps or other indications of when and 
where that damage occurred.

One photo, obtained and broadcast by CBS News, bore no notations indicating 
when it was taken or even if the vehicle pictured was involved in the 
shooting.

The evidence gaps will force investigators to rely more heavily on testimony 
and other statements from witnesses. But even those efforts have been 
hampered by a State Department deal that gave Blackwater guards limited 
immunity for their statements following the incident. As a result, the 
Justice Department cannot use those interviews in its criminal 
investigation.

There were 19 security guards at the scene. Investigators believe only a few 
fired their weapons. Investigators are pushing ahead with the search for 
additional evidence and so far are focusing on as many four guards who could 
face criminal charges.

Over the past two months, prosecutors have brought several guards before a 
Washington grand jury to describe their recollection of the shooting. 
According to the initial State Department report, the shooting occurred as 
the Blackwater convoy was responding to a car bombing about a mile outside 
the U.S.-protected Green Zone, which houses the Iraqi government and several 
embassies.

James Sweeney, a lawyer representing several guards, would not discuss the 
forensic gaps or whether the grand jury investigation is helping authorities 
bridge them. He said Blackwater guards are patriots, not aggressors.

"They are good, solid intelligent Americans. They're good people," Sweeney 
said. "They're protecting U.S. diplomats."

North Carolina-based Blackwater is the largest private security company 
protecting U.S. officials in Iraq. It has been paid more than $1 billion 
from federal contracts since 2001. Despite criticism, Blackwater notes that 
no official under its protection has been killed or seriously injured.

Blackwater also strongly denies wrongdoing in a weapons smuggling 
investigation by federal officials in North Carolina. Two former employees, 
who prosecutors say are aiding the investigation, were sentenced to 
probation Thursday on gunrunning charges.

Blackwater and other contractors operate in a legal gray area. They are 
immune from prosecution in Iraqi courts. If the Justice Department wants to 
bring criminal charges such as assault, manslaughter or murder in a U.S. 
court, prosecutors would have to do so under the Military Extraterritorial 
Jurisdiction Act.

That would require the government to show that State Department contractors 
were "supporting the mission of the Department of Defense overseas." Defense 
lawyers are expected to argue that guarding diplomats was a purely State 
Department function, one independent from the Pentagon.

The Justice Department has said it could be some time before it decides 
whether it will bring charges in the case.

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