Army contractor pleads guilty in killing of Afghan

[unhappycamper]

Army contractor pleads guilty in killing of Afghan
By Jeff Schogol, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Thursday, February 5, 2009

ARLINGTON, Va. — A civilian contractor working for an Army Human Terrain Team has pleaded guilty in the shooting of an Afghan man who set one of his teammates on fire.

Don Michael Ayala faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison for voluntary manslaughter, according to a news release from the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.

He is free on bond pending sentencing, which is scheduled for May 8, according to the United States Attorney’s Office.

On Nov. 4, Ayala was on a patrol about 50 miles west of Kandahar when a man named Abdul Salam lit a container of flammable liquid and threw it on another team member, Paula Loyd.

According to court documents, Ayala forced Salam to the ground, where Salam was handcuffed and restrained. Shortly afterwards, Ayala learned that Loyd had been burned badly.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=60466