Interviewee was a Navy Dog Handler (Team Leader) assigned to AG either November 20 or 21, 2003 until April 2, 2004.
Recalled that on November 24, 2003 there was a riot in AG, recalled the scene in the Hard Site as chaotic, recalled that cells were unlocked and dogs would enter to search for explosives while detainees were handcuffed to their cell door or their bed. He/she remembered fearing a detainee might be bitten by the dogs. Stated that he/she requested the detainees be un-cuffed before the dogs entered and that he/she would stand in between the detainee and the dog.
Recalled being called to Tier 1B and realizing after the fact that it was for the purpose of threatening/intimidating a detainee.
Noted that subsequent requests for dogs to the Hard Site for interrogation purposes were not fulfilled.
SWORN STATEMENT
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PRIVACY ACT STATEMENT Title 10 USC Section 301; Title 5 USC Section 2951; E.O. 9397 dated November 22, 1943 ISSN).
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DISCLOSURE:
4. FILE NUMBER2. DATE (YYYYMM 3. TIME
1. LOCATION
2004/06/
Metro Park, Springfield, Virginia.,
7 GRADE/STATUS
6. SSN
LAST NAME FIRST NAME, MIDDLE NAME
MA I/E 6
8. ORGANIZATION eR ADDRESS
Navy Air Station, Sigonella, Italy
s.
OATH:
WANT TO MAKE THE FOLLOWING STATEMENT UNDER
011111.11.111P
currently a Master of Aims First Class (MOS "0000") (Navy equivalent of Army Military Poiiceman) and I hold the additional specialty of Dog Handler (MOS "2005"). I am currently assigned Naval Air Station Sigonella, Italy. I was deployed to Abu Ghraib (AG) Detention Facility, Iraq, on about 20 or 21 Nov 03 and served there as a Dog Handler until I departed on 2 Apr
Although there was initially some confusion as to whom we
04. I was the team leader of a three person/three dog navy team. would be assigned when we first arrived, we were placed under the 320th Military Police (MP) Battalion (BN) f d control. I e later part of Jan 04, the 16th MP BN came in and replaced the 320th MP BN. In discussions will
c acting 320th S-3 and the 320th XO (whose name I'm not sure of), our mission was to be part of e n =al
.c (IRF) which was part of the 229th MP Company, explosive detection and gate security, and support other units like
xzacuon
the 82nd Airborne. The Navy dogs wcrc trained in patrol and explosive detection. After about the third or fourth day at AG. I
On 24 Nov 03, there was a riot at AG and we had just
implemented the team work schedule and we became fully 'operational.
up and
-
finished our part in getting the situation back undcr control. We were on standby when we got the call for the IRF to saddle report to the Hard Site to respond to an incident. I responded with about 10 to 12 personnel from the 229th MP Company. All • three Navy dog teams responded, along with the two Army dog teams. We arrived at the Hard Site at about 2000 hours. During
shooting. Although I don't know xactl when the shooting took place. I had the impressionthe brief, I found out
c IRF OIC, was on leave at the time.
it was relatively fresh. was the acting IRF NCOIC whil
and doors slamming, and there were
When we arrived at the and Site, c situation was chaos. I could hear ye ing an screaming
doors or their bunks, and
people running in and out of the site. Some of the detainees were In their cells hand-cuffed to the cell
some were out in the hallway, hand-cuffed to the open cell doors. We entered the area to the left of the Hard Site, which I later
There was
learned to be Cell Block IA, and the arca was in disarray with mattresses, clothes, and trash thrown all over the place.
one individual that appeared to be in charge, but I don't know who it was. He was about five foot, six inches to five foot, seven
to him
inches tall, medium build, medium to light complexion, with blond hair in a 'high and tight" style. I heard people referring
as "captain', but I don't know who he was. He was the same person who provided us the briefing of what was happening and said
that a weapon had been smugglr.d into the Hard Site and Intel reported that there might be hand grenades in the cells. The navy
dogs, being trained for explosive detection, were used to search the cells. The MP.; would unlock the cells for us to enter, but I
was concerned that, given the small size of the cells and close proximity of the hand-cuffed detainees, that one of the detainees
might get bitten. I instructed the MPs to un-cuff the detainees and move them out of the way. I announced myself as 1 entered
each cell space, and whenever possible 1 positioned myself between my dog and the detainee. No explosives were ever detected
and we exited the Hard Site after completing the explosives search. We were standing outside the Hard Site in a debriefing when
someone (I don't know who) called for a dog. I re-entered the Hard Site, but went to the right hand side of the Hard Site, later
identified to me as Cell Block 1B, on the top tier. When I got to the top tier, I met two soldiers in woodland BDUs that I assumed
were
MPs. I asked them where the search was and without saying anything, they pointed to a cell. When I got closer to the cell
door, I heard yelling and screaming and my dog became agitated. I looked into the cell and saw four people inside. There were
two males in civilian clothes squatting on the cell floor, a female in DCUs standing, who I later learned was an interpreter, and a
r. All three were yelling at the detainee. The cell was lit onlymale who I took to be a detainee squatting in the back ri t c
from the light coming in from the passageway. My dog was barking a lot because there was a lot of stimuli with all the
yelling and commotion. My dog lunged and I struggled to regain control of him. One of the men then said words to the effect
"You see that dog there, if you don't tell me what I want to know, I'm gonna get that dog on you." I then realized that I had not
been called for a search. About this time, the two men and the woman began to step out of the cell. I backed-up to allow them to
exit, but there was not much room on the tier. After they came out, my dog lunged and pulled me into the cell and I was worried
cd control of my dog and Hsi exited the cell I heard someone yell
because I realized there was still someone inside
"get that dog out of there." When I exited, I found a 229th MP Company sergeant with whom I workcd, standing
I t• Id him di• I t • ow, but that this didn't seem right. The two men and the woman
there and he asked me what was going on.
re-entered the cell and as 1 was still talking suddenly got the sensation that my dog was not there. I looked dowillp
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STATEMENT (Continued)
find that my dog had the female's forearm in her mouth. I regained control of my dog and asked the female if the dog had bit er. She said, "No, no, no. The dog did not bite me.' I asked her if she was sure and repeatedly asked if the dog had bitten her. She repeatedly stated that the dog had not bitten her. She pushed up her sleeve and I could see that there was no blood, no marksclothing. I made sure she did not need any medical attention. The female then returned into
or bite marks on her s ' d said, "We're fl•**]ing out of here." I departed the area and got to the bottom of thethe cell and I looked at w re's the dog", but I didn't return and went to the debrief site. I did not return the Hard Site
stairs when I heard som ne
that night. A few days later, I received a phone call from the 320th MP TOC saying that the Hard Site had requested a dog. Iasked for what, and the response was 'interrogation" or "interrogations". I explained that our dogs didn't do that and that I could two weeks or slightly more frequently, that the Hard Sue was
not fill that request. I received similar calls about once every
requesting dogs. I received about eight calls in total over those next three or four weeks. I met with my two team members and instructed them that if they received calls for support at the Hard Site, they were not to respond, unless it was for explosive detection. They also had to go as a two person team with one dog, and they had to notify me about the request. I personally never went back to the Hard Site for explosive detection, but my two team members did once or twice for explosive detection searches, notifying me right, after. I did return to the Hard Site for Internal Reactions Force responses with my dog, and for training without my dog. No one from MI ever requested dogs from me directly, and all requests came through the 320th TOC. In the later part of Dec 03, I met w",th COL PAPPAS who wanted to know what my dogs' capabilities were. I explained their capabilities and he never asked if they could be used in interrogations. I provided COL PAPPAS with a copy of the SOP for the Navy dogs, a copy of which I have also provided to investigating officers this day. I was shown two photographs during my interview today. I picked out an "ID Card" photograph of an individual that I believe is one of the men in the cell that made the statement about getting the dog on the detainee, but I am not 100% sure. I identified the same individual in a digital photograph identified to me as"photograph 11, file CG LAPS MARKS'". Iain also pretty sure that the female in that same photograph ("photograph 11, file CG LAPS MARKS") is the same female that was in the cell during that incident and whose arm was in my dog's mouth. I understand
that MG FAY has directed that I not discuss details of this inquiry with anyone other than those inve gators I know to be directly
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involved in this inquiry, or with my legal counsel. I have nothing further to add to this stateme
TEMENT/////////////////////// //////////////////////////////
11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111IEND .
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AFFIDAVIT
HAVE READ OR HAVE HAD READ TO ME THIS STATEMENT WHIC , AND ENDS ON PAGE 2 FULLY UNDERSTAND THE CONTENTS OF THE ENTIRE STATEMENT MADE
1,111Mir .,
BY ME. THE STATEMENT IS TRUE I HAVE INITIALED ALL CORRECTIONS AND HAVE INITIALED THE BOTTOM OF EACH PAGE CONTAINING THE STATEMENT. I HAVE MADE THIS STATEMENT FREELY WITHOUT HOPE OF BFNFFIT OR REWARD, WITHOUT THREAT OF PUNISHMENT, AND WITHOUT COERCION, UNLAWFUL INFLUENCE, OR UNLAWFUL INDUCEMENT.
(Signature o er (element(
Subscribed and sworn to before me, a person authorized by law to
WITNESSES administer oaths, this 4th day of June 2004
at
ORGANIZATION OR ADDRESS (Signature of Person Administering
(Typed Na of Person Administering Oath)
5 U.S.C. 303
(Authority To Administer Oaths)
ORGANIZATION OR ADDRESS.
INITIALS OF PERSON MAKING STATEMENT
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