Camp Pendleton, Calif. – A military jury on Wednesday convicted a Marine of kidnapping and conspiring to murder an Iraqi man in a bungled attempt to abduct and kill a suspected insurgent in Hamdania. Cpl. Trent Thomas was acquitted of premeditated murder, making a false official statement and housebreaking. He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, according to his defense attorney, Victor Kelley.
Thomas, 25, was the first of seven Marines and a Navy corpsman to go to trial in the killing, which squad members tried to cover up by planting a gun near the victim after he was gunned down in a ditch.
All but two of the others have entered guilty pleas. Thomas withdrew his guilty plea on the eve of sentencing after having an “epiphany.” His lawyer claimed Thomas was only following orders.
Prosecutors said that during a nighttime patrol on April 26, 2006, Thomas’ squad hatched a plan to kidnap and kill a suspected insurgent from his house. When they couldn’t find him, they instead kidnapped a man identified by prosecutors as Hashim Ibrahim Awad, a retired policeman and father of 11 who lived nearby.
The defense also argued that Thomas’ judgment was clouded by brain injuries from repeated explosions. An expert said Thomas witnessed more than 25 bomb blasts during his three tours of Iraq.
