Marines: Green door leads to Jill Carroll's kidnap trail

[outlaw3179]

ATTENTION TO DETAIL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:thumbup:


BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- One glance at an unusual door to a house west of Falluja launched U.S. troops on a hunt that led to the capture of four men suspected of kidnapping Jill Carroll, the U.S. military said on Wednesday.

A Marine lieutenant thought he recognized a small structure on the door and the gate from intelligence reports about the U.S. journalist's 82-day abduction, spokesman Maj. Gen. William Caldwell said.

The homeowner let the Marine and his team from the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force into the building where they found a specific bookcase that led them to believe they had found where Carroll was held immediately before she was freed, Caldwell said at a news conference in Baghdad. (Watch video of the house where Jill Carroll was allegedly held -- 2:04)

"The young Marine ... continued to follow up on what he remembered from the reports and [was] able to specifically identify some features associated with that ...

"He determined that, in fact, he had probably found the house where kidnap victims may have been held, specifically in this case, Jill Carroll."

The officer who pieced the clues together, 1st Lt. Jake Cusack, 24, of Grand Rapids, Michigan, then radioed his commanding officer.

"Hey, sir, don't react but this is it," Cusack recalled, in an interview with The Associated Press.

Fellow Marines said they found a slip of paper in the house with Carroll's name written on it, $3,600 in cash, and an AK-47 hidden in a car outside. A false ceiling in the shower, said to hide explosives, was also found, AP reported.

The house, in al-Habaniya, was in sight of Taqqadum Air Base, used by the U.S. military, AP said.

1st. Sgt. Chris Reed, 32, of Kirkland, Washington, told AP: "They didn't seem to worry that they were that close to a military base. Maybe they thought it'd be the last place anybody would look."

Hostages rescued
Marines arrested the homeowner beginning a chain of events that took them to three more houses that may have been used as holding cells.

In one of the houses, Marines disarmed booby traps before rescuing two other hostages, Caldwell said.

They also saw more characteristics of the home that suggested Carroll had been held there.

Four suspected kidnappers were detained in the operations that spread from Falluja to Baghdad, Caldwell said.

Two others were also detained but were not thought connected to Carroll and were released.

The names of those arrested -- all at least a month ago -- are being withheld while officials decide whether they should be prosecuted.

Carroll was working as a freelancer for The Christian Science Monitor when she was kidnapped in a Sunni neighborhood of Baghdad on January 7. She appeared in insurgent videos on Arabic-language news networks and was threatened with death until her release on March 30.

The Boston-based newspaper's editor Richard Bergenheim said Carroll and her colleagues were reassured to hear some of the kidnappers had been caught.

"The daily threat of kidnapping in Iraq remains acute for all. Everything possible needs to be done to relieve Iraqis and others of this scourge," he said in a statement.

Jill Carroll's father, Jim, told CNN that the family is "happy to hear the news" and that Jill "is doing well, in Boston, working for the Christian Science Monitor and recuperating."

The newspaper will carry her story of the ordeal next week.

[thedrifter]

Marines: Carroll was held near Iraq base

By ANTONIO CASTANEDA, Associated Press Writer
26 minutes ago

U.S. Marines who cracked the Jill Carroll kidnapping case say the American journalist was held for a time in a home within sight of a sprawling U.S. military base in western Iraq.

The Marines said the big break occurred May 19 when they searched a suspect's home near the Taqqadum logistics base seven weeks after Carroll's release. A young lieutenant linked the residence to intelligence reports in the case.

After one man was arrested near Taqqadum, other troops captured three more suspects and freed two kidnapped Iraqis in other hideouts where Carroll is thought to have been held, including a house that was booby-trapped and full of explosives, the U.S. command said Wednesday.

One of the suspects is a member of the Mujahedeen Shura Council, an umbrella organization of Sunni Arab insurgent groups that includes al-Qaida in Iraq, said Maj. Gen. William Caldwell who announced the arrests. He said no decision had been made on what legal action to take against the four.

The Associated Press spoke with the Marines last month on condition the interviews not be published until the U.S. military reported the arrests.

Caldwell said the military decided to announce the detentions in part because Carroll had prepared a series of articles for the Christian Science Monitor detailing her abduction, detention and survival.

Carroll, a freelance journalist for the Monitor, was released March 30 in Baghdad after 82 days in captivity.

Her kidnappers, a previously unknown group calling itself the Revenge Brigade, had threatened to kill her if all female detainees in Iraq were not freed. U.S. officials did release some women before her release but said the decision was unrelated to the demands.

Marines said independent tips led them to a cluster of houses near an abandoned train station outside the Taqqadum base, near Fallujah and about 50 miles west of Baghdad. A one-story home in the relatively peaceful neighborhood that Marines often drove by matched the tips.

"Where it's at, there's a mosque, a school. It blends into the neighborhood. It's like any other house," said 1st. Sgt. Chris Reed, 32, of Kirkland, Wash., who helped arrest the first suspect.

On the afternoon of the operation, 20 Marines from Company L, 3rd Battalion, 5th Regiment driving to the targeted home were struck by a roadside bomb, although none was injured. Shortly afterward a second nearby bomb exploded and insurgents fired from a car several hundred yards away.

"We knew it was a limited time window. It was our best shot at it," said 1st Lt. Jake Cusack, 24, of Grand Rapids, Mich., who matched together the intelligence reports that led to the home.

Marines who arrived at the suspect's house presented their stopover as a regular visit. While several spoke with the suspect in his living room, others quickly searched the rest of the home.

Inside, Marines confirmed the house matched their intelligence reports. They said they also found a slip of paper with Carroll's name written on it, $3,600 in U.S. currency and an AK-47 assault rifle hidden in a car outside. They also discovered a false ceiling in the shower, which had been used to hide explosives in the past.

"Hey, sir, don't react but this is it," Cusack recalled radioing to his commanding officer, who was still chatting with the suspect.

Marines said the suspect calmly responded to their questions — until one Marine mentioned how a recent spate of kidnappings in the area had angered him.

"He blanches, just for a second, then (a Marine) says, 'All right, you're coming up with us,'" recalled Cusack.

Three males at the home were detained, including the one now among the accused in Carroll's abduction.

Marines said they were confident they had found the right house and man. "I'm more sure about this than any other detention I've had in Iraq," Cusack said. "I'm 100 percent sure he's the guy."

The suspect's home lies within view of a fence that surrounds the Taqqadum logistics base, where dozens of U.S. helicopters and planes fly in and out each day ferrying supplies for Marines serving in volatile western Iraq.

"They didn't seem to worry that they were that close to a military base. Maybe they thought it'd be the last place anybody would look," Reed said.

On the day of her release, Carroll was dropped off by her abductors at the offices of the Iraqi Islamic Party in Baghdad. There she was interviewed by the Sunni party's television station before she was retrieved by U.S. forces.

Though she had been shown weeping on a tape broadcast on Al-Jazeera television weeks before, Carroll said she was never hurt or threatened by her captives.

"I was kept in a very good, small safe place, a safe room, nice furniture," she said. She said she was given clothing and plenty of food.

The Christian Science Monitor expressed gratitude for the arrests.

"Like reporters everywhere, we are reassured to hear that several of those believed to have held Jill have been apprehended," editor Richard Bergenheim said. "The daily threat of kidnapping in Iraq remains acute for all. Everything possible needs to be done to relieve Iraqis and others of this scourge."

The newspaper said Carroll was "enormously grateful" for the efforts on her behalf but would not comment further, pending the release of a story on its Web site.

Ellie

[marinegreen]

This is totally wrong !! The reason being was I seen who was BEHIND the GREENDOOR, and it was none other then Ms Marilyn Chambers!!!SF
MG

[thedrifter]

This is totally wrong !! The reason being was I seen who was BEHIND the GREENDOOR, and it was none other then Ms Marilyn Chambers!!!SF
MG

HMM>>The Ivory Snow baby....;) :D


Marines: Carroll Was Held Near Iraq Base
Marines Arrest 4 Iraqis in Kidnapping of American Journalist Jill Carroll
By ANTONIO CASTANEDA
The Associated Press

HABANIYAH, Iraq - U.S. Marines who cracked the Jill Carroll kidnapping case say the American journalist was held for a time in a home within sight of a sprawling U.S. military base in western Iraq.

The Marines said the big break occurred May 19 when they searched a suspect's home near the Taqqadum logistics base seven weeks after Carroll's release. A young lieutenant linked the residence to intelligence reports in the case.

After one man was arrested near Taqqadum, other troops captured three more suspects and freed two kidnapped Iraqis in other hideouts where Carroll is thought to have been held, including a house that was booby-trapped and full of explosives, the U.S. command said Wednesday.

One of the suspects is a member of the Mujahedeen Shura Council, an umbrella organization of Sunni Arab insurgent groups that includes al-Qaida in Iraq, said Maj. Gen. William Caldwell who announced the arrests. He said no decision had been made on what legal action to take against the four.

The Associated Press spoke with the Marines last month on condition the interviews not be published until the U.S. military reported the arrests.

Caldwell said the military decided to announce the detentions in part because Carroll had prepared a series of articles for the Christian Science Monitor detailing her abduction, detention and survival.

Carroll, a freelance journalist for the Monitor, was released March 30 in Baghdad after 82 days in captivity.

Her kidnappers, a previously unknown group calling itself the Revenge Brigade, had threatened to kill her if all female detainees in Iraq were not freed. U.S. officials did release some women before her release but said the decision was unrelated to the demands.

Marines said independent tips led them to a cluster of houses near an abandoned train station outside the Taqqadum base, near Fallujah and about 50 miles west of Baghdad. A one-story home in the relatively peaceful neighborhood that Marines often drove by matched the tips.

"Where it's at, there's a mosque, a school. It blends into the neighborhood. It's like any other house," said 1st. Sgt. Chris Reed, 32, of Kirkland, Wash., who helped arrest the first suspect.

On the afternoon of the operation, 20 Marines from Company L, 3rd Battalion, 5th Regiment driving to the targeted home were struck by a roadside bomb, although none was injured. Shortly afterward a second nearby bomb exploded and insurgents fired from a car several hundred yards away.

"We knew it was a limited time window. It was our best shot at it," said 1st Lt. Jake Cusack, 24, of Grand Rapids, Mich., who matched together the intelligence reports that led to the home.

Marines who arrived at the suspect's house presented their stopover as a regular visit. While several spoke with the suspect in his living room, others quickly searched the rest of the home.

Inside, Marines confirmed the house matched their intelligence reports. They said they also found a slip of paper with Carroll's name written on it, $3,600 in U.S. currency and an AK-47 assault rifle hidden in a car outside. They also discovered a false ceiling in the shower, which had been used to hide explosives in the past.

"Hey, sir, don't react but this is it," Cusack recalled radioing to his commanding officer, who was still chatting with the suspect.

Marines said the suspect calmly responded to their questions until one Marine mentioned how a recent spate of kidnappings in the area had angered him.

"He blanches, just for a second, then (a Marine) says, 'All right, you're coming up with us,'" recalled Cusack.

Three males at the home were detained, including the one now among the accused in Carroll's abduction.

Marines said they were confident they had found the right house and man. "I'm more sure about this than any other detention I've had in Iraq," Cusack said. "I'm 100 percent sure he's the guy."

The suspect's home lies within view of a fence that surrounds the Taqqadum logistics base, where dozens of U.S. helicopters and planes fly in and out each day ferrying supplies for Marines serving in volatile western Iraq.

"They didn't seem to worry that they were that close to a military base. Maybe they thought it'd be the last place anybody would look," Reed said.

On the day of her release, Carroll was dropped off by her abductors at the offices of the Iraqi Islamic Party in Baghdad. There she was interviewed by the Sunni party's television station before she was retrieved by U.S. forces.

Though she had been shown weeping on a tape broadcast on Al-Jazeera television weeks before, Carroll said she was never hurt or threatened by her captives.

"I was kept in a very good, small safe place, a safe room, nice furniture," she said. She said she was given clothing and plenty of food.

The Christian Science Monitor expressed gratitude for the arrests.

"Like reporters everywhere, we are reassured to hear that several of those believed to have held Jill have been apprehended," editor Richard Bergenheim said. "The daily threat of kidnapping in Iraq remains acute for all. Everything possible needs to be done to relieve Iraqis and others of this scourge."

The newspaper said Carroll was "enormously grateful" for the efforts on her behalf but would not comment further, pending the release of a story on its Web site.

Ellie

[Camper51]

Marilyn Chambers was NOT the Ivory Snow baby.... She was the MOTHER holding the baby. Check out Snopes.com for the story...

[Osotogary]

"This is totally wrong !! The reason being was I seen who was BEHIND the GREENDOOR, and it was none other then Ms Marilyn Chambers!!!"
LMAO. I'm here to tell you that the "movie house" the showed this flick (O'Farrell Street Theatre in SF....I think :)) did not, I repeat did not serve the best popcorn in town. I have the feeling that alot of Marines that were stationed in or around the Alameda Naval Air Station and Treasure Island would know of this fine "upscale" theatre.

Seriously, thanks for the fine attention to detail Marines.

[marinegreen]

Marilyn Chambers was NOT the Ivory Snow baby.... She was the MOTHER holding the baby. Check out Snopes.com for the story...



Holy chit !! everybody ducccckkkk !! Camper thru the gauntlet at Ms. "E":scared:
~BOLT OF LIGHTING~ to follow !!
MG:yes:

PS.Hope she dont see this but yer right Camper,(using invisable ink)

[marinegreen]

"This is totally wrong !! The reason being was I seen who was BEHIND the GREENDOOR, and it was none other then Ms Marilyn Chambers!!!"
LMAO. I'm here to tell you that the "movie house" the showed this flick (O'Farrell Street Theatre in SF....I think :)) did not, I repeat did not serve the best popcorn in town. I have the feeling that alot of Marines that were stationed in or around the Alameda Naval Air Station and Treasure Island would know of this fine "upscale" theatre.

Seriously, thanks for the fine attention to detail Marines.



I seen it in Okinawa,they used fuzzy lil circles to hide the tools of the trade, pizzed me off to cuz finally got behind the greendoor and ended up seeing spots.SF
MG:yes:

[thedrifter]

Holy chit !! everybody ducccckkkk !! Camper thru the gauntlet at Ms. "E":scared:
~BOLT OF LIGHTING~ to follow !!
MG:yes:

PS.Hope she dont see this but yer right Camper,(using invisable ink)


No lighting bolt needed...Haven't check yet on snoops, but if I'm wrong I take my punishment...Mark loves doing this part.....winky wink..

I never said to be perfect...:D

Damn rumors....LOL

Ellie

[marinegreen]

I knew it,I just knew it,I knew better then to believe that guy who said the invisable ink was legit.Nope he's correct Ellie,wow I dang near forgot all about that commercial.

[Camper51]

No Problem, Ellie, I have the wet noodle ready for your punishment... Hee hee.

Actually I was cruising on Snopes yesterday and that was one of the things I found...

[thedrifter]

I like a little oil with that noodle....;)

Need all the help in the world to keep me on my toes....

Hell ask Mark:D :angel:

Ellie

[Camper51]

I'll use 30 wt... Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh you wanted olive??????????

[thedrifter]

I only have the best...;) :D

Ellie

[marinegreen]

Hell at $15 a bottle for Olive oil,that noodle better be wigglen for quite sometime. ~Wiggle on Marines,Wiggle On~ SF