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WASHINGTON - American troops searching buildings in the Iraqi city of Fallujah apparently have come across some personal belongings of Utah Marine Cpl. Wassef Ali Hassoun, who said he was abducted last summer from his base near the city.
Hassoun failed to report for duty June 20 and was believed to have deserted until videotapes were broadcast, apparently showing insurgents wielding a sword over his head. Hassoun was blindfolded and wearing military fatigues.
That uniform was found last week by U.S. soldiers searching the third floor of a commercial building in Fallujah, military sources told The Associated Press. The box also contained Hassoun's military identification card and a book.
Maj. Matt Morgan, spokesman for Hassoun's unit, the 4th Marine Expeditionary Force based at Camp Lejeune, N.C., said information from Iraqi operations is classified but the reports are based on "relatively legitimate information."
The Naval Criminal Investigative Service reported the findings of its investigation to commanders at Camp Lejeune two weeks ago, but the inquiry remains open and any new information can be taken into
account, Morgan said.
"It's impossible to tell at this point what bearing, if any, this potential evidence will have," Morgan said.
Spokespersons for the NCIS were traveling and could not be reached Wednesday.
The videotapes were aired June 27, and shortly after that a group released a statement claiming to have beheaded him.
On July 8, however, Hassoun turned up at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon. How he traveled through Iraq to Lebanon remains a mystery. After his return to the United States, Hassoun issued a pair of statements, spare on details but insisting he had been kidnapped. A native of Lebanon who now is a U.S. citizen, Hassoun pledged his loyalty to the nation and the Marine Corps.
Following a lengthy repatriation process and a 30-day compassionate leave in Utah, Hassoun returned to duty at Camp Lejeune in September and had his first meeting with military investigators.
In his final interview with NCIS investigators at the end of September, Hassoun terminated the meeting shortly after being read his rights under military law.
Hassoun was on leave for much of October, spending the Islamic holy month of Ramadan with his family in West Jordan. He returned to Camp Lejeune on Wednesday.