U.S. indicts CIA contractor in Afghanistan prison

[desdemona]

U.S. indicts CIA contractor in Afghanistan prison death

By Terry Frieden

CNN Washington Bureau

Tuesday, June 22, 2004 Posted: 2:21 PM EDT (1821 GMT)

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A contractor working for the CIA has been indicted on charges stemming from the death of a prisoner at a prison in Afghanistan, Justice Department officials said.

It is the first time charges have been brought against a civilian since the reports of alleged prison abuse in Iraq and Afghanistan surfaced in the past few months.

The four-count indictment says the contractor, David Passaro, 38, beat an Afghan prisoner identified as Abdul Wali, who had surrendered voluntarily at the front gate of a U.S. detention facility near Asadabad in the northeastern Kunar Province on June 18, 2003.

The remote site, which had been under frequent rocket attack, is about five miles from the Pakistani border, where remnants of the Taliban and al Qaeda remain active.

A federal grand jury in Raleigh, North Carolina, returned the indictment, which includes two counts of assault causing serious injury and two counts of assault with a deadly weapon.

Each count carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine upon conviction. Federal law allows civilian charges to be brought against U.S. citizens for crimes overseas if they are not under military jurisdiction.

After a brief court appearance Thursday, Passaro was ordered to remain in custody pending a detention hearing set for next Tuesday.

Attorney General John Ashcroft said at a Thursday news conference that Wali was suspected of participating in the attacks on the Asadabad base and that Passaro's job was to assist military personnel detain prisoners at the base.

While in custody, Wali was interrogated by Passaro about the rocket attacks, Ashcroft said.

"During these interrogations on June 19 and June 20, it is alleged that Passaro beat Wali repeatedly using his hands and feet and a large flashlight," Ashcroft said, quoting from the indictment.

"Abdul Wali died in a cell on Asadabad Base on June 21, 2003," the indictment says.

Passaro, a former U.S. Army Ranger, had arrived at the base at the beginning of June, a U.S. official said.

Ashcroft said the case would be fully investigated.

"President Bush has made it clear that the U.S. will not tolerate criminal acts of brutality such as those alleged in this indictment," he said in a prepared statement. "The types of illegal abuse detailed run counter to our values and our policies and are not representative of our men and women in the military and associated personnel serving honorably and admirably for the cause of freedom."

Passaro, of Lillington, North Carolina, was arrested Thursday morning at his workplace in Fayetteville.

Officials said Passaro was to have an initial appearance Thursday afternoon at the federal courthouse in Raleigh.

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http://www.cnn.com/2004/LAW/06/17/afghan.i...ment/index.html