Seattle man could face charges in Blackwater case

Federal prosecutors in Seattle are awaiting word from the Department of Justice to decide whether to indict a former Blackwater USA security operator now living in Seattle for the Christmas Eve 2006 shooting death of the bodyguard of the Iraqi vice president.

The case is not connected with the shooting involving six Blackwater contractors in a crowded Baghdad square in September 2007 that left 17 civilians dead.

According to congressional testimony and news accounts, Seattle resident Andrew Moonen was working an as armorer in the protected Green Zone in Baghdad and had been drinking at a Christmas party when he passed through a gate near the residence of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and was confronted by a guard.

According to a memorandum issued last year by the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Moonen fired several shots. The Iraqi, identified as 32-year-old Raheem Khalif, was hit three times and died. Khalif was assigned to the protection detail of Vice President Adil Abd-al-Mahdi.

The shooting was one of several highlighted by congressional investigators concerned about a series of questionable incidents involving the use of deadly force by private security operators in Iraqis. The Moonen incident was widely publicized after a September 2007 incident in which Blackwater operators opened fire on a group of Iraqis.

Moonen, a former Army Ranger with the 82nd Airborne Division, was fired by Blackwater for violating policy about being armed while intoxicated.

U.S. Attorney Jeff Sullivan, whose Seattle office has conducted the investigation because Moonen lives here, said his prosecutors have submitted memos and other information to the DOJ for review before he decides whether to seek an indictment against Moonen.

Moonen's Seattle defense attorney has questioned whether the U.S. government has jurisdiction to prosecute Moonen for an incident that happened halfway around the world. Moreover, he said there are factual issues in dispute, such as whether Moonen was acting in self-defense.

Information from Seattle Times archives and staff reporter Mike Carter is included in this report.