SAN DIEGO (AP) — Assault charges were filed Thursday against six Marines stemming from an incident in April in the Iraqi village of Hamdania, military officials said.
The alleged assault was uncovered during an investigation that previously led to allegations that seven Marines and a Navy corpsman murdered an Iraqi civilian on April 26.
Three of those Marines — Sgt. Lawrence G. Hutchins III, Cpl. Trent D. Thomas and Lance Cpl. Jerry E. Shumate Jr. — now face an additional charge in the April 10 assault.
The other Marines charged with assault were Lance Cpl. Saul H. Lopezromo, Pfc. Derek I. Lewis and Lance Cpl. Henry D. Lever. The nature of the assault was not described.
A seventh Marine, an officer, is expected to be charged next week in connection with the assault, said Lt. Col. Colby Vokey, the Marine Corps' defense coordinator for the western United States.
The six Marines were charged after the Naval Criminal Investigative Service investigated the April 26 killing of 52-year-old Hashim Ibrahim Awad in Hamdania.
The eight troops who have been charged with the kidnap and murder of Awad — including Hutchins, Thomas and Shumate — are in the Camp Pendleton brig. A hearing will be held to determine whether there is probable cause for a full trial.