By ,
Published May 03, 2016
A decorated Green Beret allegedly confessed to killing an unarmed Afghan bomb maker and conspiring to destroy the body during a job interview with the CIA, the Army Times has reported.
Special Forces Maj. Mathew Golsteyn was stripped of a Silver Star for valor after the Army investigated the alleged 2011 confession.
“In an interview conducted with the CIA, then-Capt. Golsteyn claimed to have captured and shot and buried a suspected IED bomb maker,” the ArmyTimes said Thursday, citing a newly surfaced Army document. “He further went (on) to comment that he went back out with two others to cremate the body and dispose of the remains.”
The publication reported that the secret document was first published Wednesday by The Intercept website.
The internal Sept. 29, 2014, information paper says an investigation by Army criminal investigators determined Golsteyn “committed the offenses of murder and conspiracy based on the interview provided by the CIA,” the Washington Post said.
The Post also quoted the document as saying Golsteyn “was not remorseful as he had solid intelligence and his actions protected the safety of his fellow teammates.”
No charges have ever been filed against Golsteyn.
The Army Times said The Intercept also published a letter of reprimand Golsteyn received in 2014.
“Your behavior in this matter manifests a complete lack of judgment and responsibility," the letter stated. "You have discredited yourself, the U.S. Army Special Forces Command, and the United States Army. Your conduct constitutes a serious departure from the high standards of integrity and professionalism expected of a Commissioned officer of this command."
Golsteyn’s lawyer, Phil Stackhouse, did not respond to requests for comment from the Army Times and the Post. He told The Intercept that the Army document “contains incorrect information in several important and significant areas.”
A spokesman for Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.), a Golsteyn supporter, dismissed the document as a creation of the Army.
Under heavy fire during a 2010 battle with Afghan insurgents, Golsteyn coordinated the evacuation of a wounded Afghan soldier, along with airstrikes that stopped the attack. He was awarded the Silver Star and told it would be upgraded to a Distinguished Service Cross, second only to the Medal of Honor.
He faces a board of inquiry the week of May 18 that could lead to his ouster from the Army.
https://www.foxnews.com/us/report-green-beret-confessed-to-killing-afghan-during-cia-interview