A just-amended lawsuit alleges six additional instances of unprovoked attacks on Iraqi civilians by Blackwater contractors.
Three people, including a 9-year-old boy, are said to have died.
Also added to the suit is a racketeering count accusing Blackwater founder Erik Prince of running an ongoing criminal enterprise involved in, among other things, kidnapping and child prostitution.
The latest charges, filed this week in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, bring to more than 60 the number of Iraqis allegedly killed or wounded since 2005 by armed Blackwater contractors guarding U.S. diplomatic personnel in Iraq.
The Moyock, N.C.-based security company, since renamed Xe, earned more than $1 billion under that contract before the State Department, under pressure from the Iraqi government, let it lapse in May.
One of the new plaintiffs is the estate of Akram Khalid Sa’ed Jasim, 9, who died when Blackwater shooters allegedly opened fire on a minivan returning from the Baghdad airport on July 1, 2007. The boy was traveling with his extended family, who had gone to the airport to apply for passports.
The Blackwater guards also shot the boy’s mother in the back as she bent over trying to shield her 3-month-old daughter, who nevertheless was shot in the face, according to the lawsuit. The boy’s father, uncle and cousin also were wounded.
The racketeering count added to the suit this week accuses Prince’s companies of engaging in murder, weapons smuggling, money laundering, tax evasion, kidnapping, child prostitution, illegal drug use and destruction of evidence.
The companies are accused of carrying out three or more kidnappings using three airplanes, identified in the suit by their tail numbers. Susan Burke, the plaintiffs’ lawyer, said Wednesday that the kidnappings appear to have been so-called “extraordinary renditions” in which suspects are taken to other countries for interrogation.
The child prostitution charge involves young Iraqi girls allegedly being brought to the Blackwater compound in Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone, identified in the lawsuit as the “Blackwater Man Camp,” to provide oral sex to contractors for $1.
The purpose of the racketeering allegations is to demonstrate a “pattern of illegality” by Xe and its affiliated companies, Burke said.
If the court rules against Xe on the racketeering count, it could dissolve the company or place restrictions on its future activities.
“What we’re very, very worried about is this company hurting other people going forward around the globe,” Burke said. “They’re moving into Africa, they’re moving into other places, and we believe they need judicial supervision.”
Anne Tyrrell, a Xe spokeswoman, said the company “rejects these allegations, which are largely identical to past allegations made by the same group of attorneys in other, unrelated cases.”
Bill Sizemore, (757) 446-2276, bill.sizemore@pilotonline.com
What is sickening is that Erik Prince claims to be christian. Yep he sure sounds like a jesus believing christian man. May he, and He will BURN IN HELL FOR ETERNITY!!!!
This man, and his people are truly of the devil, luciferian worshippers.
This is why good christians get a bad name.
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Restraint Nurse Reply:
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:51 pm
wow, tried,convicted and sentencet to hell all base on allegations from an attorny. Although profiting 1 billion dollars from anothers misery should bring out the questions and sharks.
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JER Reply:
July 3rd, 2009 at 1:35 pm
Hey nurse, I have seen these people kill in cold blood in Iraq, Families in vehicles being fired on because these guys with Blackwater were bored, and Mr prince defends their actions. So tell me what do you know about them???????
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Wait until these private armies turn inward on American citizens to protect the corporate interests and start murdering Americans in the streets. It will happen, you heard it here first.
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Before I left Iraq in Jan 2009 I heard through the grape vine that you could hook up with local prostitutes for $1. Now I read this and see it in writing.
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I think Mr Erik Prince should read the Bible one of these days. I love how the more “Christian” these politically-connected right wing extremists publicly claim to be, the more morally corrupt they seem to be behind closed doors. I am surprised the religious right has not expressed any outrage regarding the child prostitution claims. This testimony is from the witnesses (former employees) which are not a party to the lawsuit and will not gain from its outcome NOT the attorneys. I doubt these objective witnesses would put their lives and freedom in jeopardy to lie with nothing to gain. One of the witnesses is a former Marine. I would believe another former Marine before some zealot hypocrite like Mr Prince.
I am also sickened by the wife swapping sex rings of Blackwater (now Xe) executives in Virginia. Not that what happens in someone’s bedroom is our business but that when these people claim to be Holy Christian warriors or modern Knight of the Templar and better than the rest of us (some of which actually are making a good faith effort to live a moral Christian life). I love hypocrites.
I guess Mr Prince is unaware of the Ten Commandments…
You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name
You shall not murder.
Neither shall you commit adultery.
Neither shall you bear false witness against your neighbor.
You shall not commit adultery
However Christianity teaches to let he who is free of sin to cast the first stone and I am not free of sin myself. However I have not held my self out publicly to claim some kind of moral superiority.
Since murder is not condoned in the Bible the Torah nor the Koran I find it unbelivable that someone who claims to be a devout Christian, Muslim or Jew believe in killing one another inthe name of God and Allah. To kill in the name of God (or Allah) seems to me to be the Ultimate Sin making Erik Prince a step below Satan if you actually believe the Bible to be taken literally as the word of God. I guess all these Christians, Jews and Muslims that have been killing each other in the names of God and Allah will have to repent of face damnation (and not receive 13 virgins as the Muslim extremists seem to believe).
I find it interesting that Fox News, Bill O’Riley, Rush Limbaugh and all these other “Christian” false leaders seem to only care about Catholics priests and liberals molesting children and when allegations of the their own committing such heinous crimes they go silent. I guess they are more motivated by their political and monetary rewards than their “faith”.
I guess these racists believe that children that are not from the “Superior” race, i.e. theirs the Aryans with pure blood must must animals or less and should not have the same human rights as white European or American children. I amquite certain if a Muslim in Alabama were even accused (not proved or convicted) of molesting and white “American” girl he would be lynched before even receiving an indictment. And I am not pro-Muslim nor pro-Hebrew nor am I a Christian (witnessing the hypocrisy of our “Christian” leaders like Fallwell, Baker, Ensign, et al. can really kill ones faith in the word and as a former Marine I found the Bible to contradict the job requirements. I am a causcasian that believes in REAL American values that ALL MEN (and women) ARE CREATED EQUAL and that the founding father of our once great nation would turn in the graves if they saw the corruption and lack of patriotism exhibited by our current politicians (Republicans and Democrats) that serve only themselves and their own greed.
I love to hear what a “REAL” Christian leader like Rick Warren, whom I have much respect for, would have to say about this greed, moral corruption and hypocrisy.
How can we elect convicted felons to serve as Congressmen and Senators? Have we no standards anymore? Why wasn’t Bill Clinton prosecuted for perjury and obstruction of justice? Why isn’t Dick Cheney being prosecuted for treason (revealing the identity of a clandestine intelligence operative during a time of war is treason subject to the firing squad) or for war crimes for torturing enemy combatants? It seems we have no problems prosecuting our enlisted soldiers for following these unlawful commands but our leaders lack the moral fortitude to prosecute the higher-ranking officers and politicians that were supposed to be their leaders and held to a higher standard? I guess not in America in 2009. Barrack Obama was elected in part to end the Bush Administration’s moves toward a dictatorship but now is reluctant to disavow the extraordinary (and unconstitutional) powers seized by the Executive branch in the last 8 years after he vilified Bush for these same policies??? Maybe Bill Clinton, Dick Cheney, George W. Bush (not George H.W. Bush – I actually have more respect for him since he served honorably in the REAL military) and now Obama want America is to be a Monarchy like England? As a lawyer and a constitutional law professor I though he would have more respect for the Constitution? Well he has until 2012 to figure this one and uphold the Constitution out if he wants my vote.
I find it fascinating that when I served under President H.W. Bush and Dick Cheney was the Secretary of Defense I had no idea he was a draft dodger just like Clinton and the Republicans had the audactity to expose Bill Clinton as a draft dodger when they appointed a draft dodger to the Secretary of Defense and then as vice president for Bush Jr??? Now that is hypocrisy and irony at it’s finest. To think I voted for Bush in 2000 thinking even though his “service record” was questionable at least he had Dick Cheney whom I ASSUMED was former general or admiral since he was Bush Sr’s Secretary of Defense I guess that’s mistake I lived to regret. At least I learned NEVER to assume anything with these Washington Charlatans it would have been nice if the the Democatics in that election had the testicular fortitude to expose Cheney for what he was – a draft dodger just like Bill. No wonder this guy has no respect for our military (just like Bill) and actually thought of using (or disgracing) or military by having Bush use Martial Law and order them to conduct law enforcement on U.S. Soil in New York instead of the FBI (who has appropriate jurisdiction) in absolute violation of Posse Comitatus. This would have been legitimate grounds for armed revolt by “a well regulated militia” and would have jeopardized the legitimacy of the U.S. Government and the Executive Branch. Isn’t this why we fought the British for using soldiers against civilians on our soil?
Have we no standards any more? Is the Constitution now irrelevant?
Erik Prince had better hope that the Christian God as described in the Bible does not exist and will not sit in judgment on his soul. Because based upon making millions of dollars in profiting from murder and genocide and allowing the molestation of children will leave him slightly behind the child molesting Catholic priests, Hitler, Pol Pot, Saddam Hussein, Osama Bin Ladin, and possibly in front of the corrupt televangelists and others misusing the Word for financial gain in the line for Damnation. May God have Mercy on his soul.
Well I guess I may have pissed off all the powerful people on this one. I guess we will know this is still America and not Iran, or North Korea if I am not arrested by federal agents on some “manufactured” evidence or sent to some foreign hell like that other guy under the rendition policies of Clinton, Holder, Bush and now Obama. If so then oh well. In the words of a REAL American and a REAL patriot “give me liberty or give me death”.
DISCLAIMER: I am not suggesting or supporting revolutions or armed insurrection. I firmly belive in the Democratic process and belive we are to support the “lawful” orders of our elected President and to impeach him or vote against him if he fails to uphold the Constitution (and enforce our laws) as sworn in his oath at inauguration regardless of these devisive Republican vs Democrat parlor games that only serve to weaken our country by dividing us and increase their (and the lobbyists) powers while robbing regular Americans of their wealth and rights.
Shouldn’t the angry citizens be symbolically hanging lobbyists in effigy before corrupt politicians, since they are the cancer that is destroying America and they ones benefiting from these corrupt scoundrels at our the expense of the taxpayers? It seems our anger and outrage are frequently misdirected by the media and their advertising revenues both on the left and the right?
Semper Fi
Mike F.
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Good post! I plan to move into this stuff after I’m done with school, as most of it is time consuming. It’s a great post to reference back to. My blog needs more time to gain in popularity anyway.
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