Schofield soldier charged in shooting

BAGHDAD — A soldier has been charged with murder in the slaying of a civilian contractor on an American base in Iraq, the military said Tuesday.

Spc. Beyshee Velez of Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, was charged Monday in the Sept. 13 shooting death of a contractor who worked for Houston-based KBR at Camp Speicher in the city of Tikrit, a military statement said.

The 31-year-old suspect faces dishonorable discharge and a maximum sentence of life in prison if found guilty. He is being held in Hawaii pending the outcome of the trial. He was also charged with assault and fleeing arrest.

Velez is assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 7th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division.

The military statement gave no other details and said the investigation into the shooting was ongoing.

Not Blackwater, but Xe, as in Xena Warrior Princess

Blackwater has gone to ground–sort of.  In a move to apparently distance itself from its image as reckless cowboys that was etched into the world’s mind from the September 2007 Baghdad Nisoor Square shoots, Blackwater USA is once again rebranding itself.  It has changed its name (and presumably legal structure) to Xe.  (Pronounced, “Z” as in “Xena, Warrior Princess.”)

The world’s largest private security company that once boasted on its website, “We are not simply a ‘private security company.’ We are a turnkey solution provider for 4th generation warfare,” has taken yet another step to distance itself from its swashbuckling past.   Due to its aggressive, yet effective tactics, it became the world’s poster child for irresponsible guns for hire, an ironic reputation since Blackwater was actually one of the most professional of the hundred plus private military organizations.

See also:

Report: State Department & Blackwater Cooperated to Neutralize Killings

Accused Blackwater Shooters Face Trial in D.C.

Sources: Blackwater guards indicted

Security firms told they lose immunity in Iraq: official

Blackwater Busted? Six Guards May Be Charged in Iraq Massacre

New Blackwater Iraq Scandal: Guns, Silencers and Dog Food

Blackwater May Face Criminal Charges, Hefty Fines Over Arms Shipments

Military Contractor in Iraq Holds Foreign Workers in Warehouse

Source for video

BAGHDAD — About 1,000 Asian men who were hired by a Kuwaiti subcontractor to the U.S. military have been confined for as long as three months in windowless warehouses near the Baghdad airport without money or a place to work. Najlaa International Catering Services, a subcontractor to KBR, an engineering, construction and services company, hired the men, who’re from India, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. On Tuesday, they staged a march outside their compound to protest their living conditions. Previous: Suit claims Halliburton, KBR sickened base

Suit claims Halliburton, KBR sickened base

A Georgia man has filed a lawsuit against contractor KBR and its former parent company, Halliburton, saying the companies exposed everyone at Joint Base Balad in Iraq to unsafe water, food and hazardous fumes from the burn pit there.