An M4 machine gun sent to Iraq by the Blackwater private security firm somehow disappeared from the company's storage facility in Baghdad and was later discovered during a US military operation, apparently against suspected insurgents, people familiar with the situation have told ABC News.
The incident, in 2006, has been kept secret until now but it raised more questions about Blackwater's operations in Iraq.
The Jo Daviess County courtroom had plenty of breathing room on Wednesday, Aug. 27, but Martin Hippie promised he could change that if the zoning board gave him a chance.
"If I had known about this earlier, I'm sure we could have packed this room with people opposed to Blackwater," he said. "I think the public has a right to know, and zoning is really a way for us to protect our land."