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Sexual Assault Charges for Former Iraq Contractor
Iraq Sex Crimes Prosecutions Rare, Experts Say
Federal prosecutors have charged a former KBR employee with sexually assaulting a female co-worker in Iraq last year.
(ABC News) Charles Breda, 34, of Pearland, Texas, was arrested last week and charged with abusive sexual contact of another employee of Texas-based government contracting giant KBR in October 2008 at Camp Al Asad. Breda, who left KBR earlier this year, was arrested last week at a Houston-area barber college. He has pled not guilty. He appeared in court Wednesday for a detention hearing.
KBR hired the musclebound Breda in 2007 to work in a gym for government personnel in Iraq.
In sometimes-graphic testimony in a Houston federal courtroom Wednesday, Naval Criminal Investivative Service agent Kelly Barcino described how Breda's alleged victim said Breda forced himself on her. After helping move her into new quarters, Breda tried to kiss the woman, exposed his penis, and pushed the alleged victim onto the bed, according to Barcino's testimony.
"KBR immediately reported the allegations of assault against Mr. Breda to the NCIS and cooperated fully with their investigation," said KBR spokeswoman Heather Browne in an emailed statement Wednesday. "KBR in no way condones or tolerates unethical or illegal behavior. The safety and security of our employees, subcontractors and customers is our top priority."
Thursday morning, Breda's attorney Roderick White said that "it wouldn't be appropriate for me right now to comment on the specific facts of the case."
Present at Wednesday's hearing was Jamie Leigh Jones, a former KBR employee who alleged in 2007 she had been a victim of a gang rape while working in Baghdad. No charges were ever brought in her case, although a 20/20 investigation of her story brought worldwide attention to the plight of sexually assaulted U.S. workers in war zones.
To read the rest of the story, click here.
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5 Comments so far
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B urn
R APE.
These incidents happen not in vacuums. In the Army also, why is sexual assualt systemic? Because "the guys," are okay with it. The "volunteer," killers are a little loose in the morals department.
In WW2 or Viet-Nam, if a woman had been attacked in the field, the rapist would have been KIA'd. Woman were still respected then as people, not seen as sexual objects from anime or video games.
I hope the rapist is killed in jail.
He SHOULD have been killed by the gutless men who knew of the Rape. On the spot. Who heard her scream and turned a deaf ear, who "looked out?"
From a larger perspective, Irony to be appreciated, The Feds busted Charles...
But KBR burned the Fed for HOW many hundreds of millions?
No sweat! They knew where to deposit the kickbacks.
I love my country. Ijustcan'tfindit.
THE ONLY CRIMES THAT KBR HASN'T COMMITTED ARE THOSE THAT HAVEN'T BEEN CONSIDERED CRIMES YET. WHEN THEY ARE THEY WILL.
Wasn't KBR known, back during Vietnam (when it was only B&R) as 'Burn & Loot' after LBJ granted them billions of dollars in 'no bid contracts'?
kogwonton, thanks I did not know that, but scoped it out and sure as Hell. Those protesting, rioting hippies called 'em just that. whoah. Halliburton has been in war zones forever. Texas, a virus in America's blood.