Kristian Menchaca
Encyclopedia
Kristian Menchaca Brownsville
, Texas
, was a United States Army
Private First Class (PFC) who was tortured, killed, and mutilated by Al-Qaeda in Iraq
. He was married to Christina Menchaca of Big Spring
in September 2005, before he was deployed to Iraq
.
during an attack that left a third soldier SPC David J. Babineau shot to death on a roadside checkpoint on June 16, 2006, in Youssifiyah, Iraq
- an area known as the Triangle of Death. Menchaca was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 502d Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division
(Air Assault), Fort Campbell
, Kentucky
. PFC Thomas Lowell Tucker
also went missing in that same incident. Residents in the area were offered $100,000 for any information leading to the finding of the soldiers but they refused.
On June 20, 2006, military sources reported that the bodies believed to be Tucker and Menchaca were found in Youssifiyah. The corpses of two U.S. soldiers were mutilated and booby-trapped, with improvised explosive device
s on the road leading to them. Senior Iraqi general Major General Abdul-Aziz Mohammed told Reuters
that the men were tortured and killed in a barbaric way. Relatives of Menchaca reported they had been notified that his body had been found. Mujahedeen Shura Council, a group linked to al Qaeda said in their statement: "We announce the good news to our Islamic nation that God's will was executed and the two crusader animals we had in captivity were slaughtered"..."And God has given our Emir, Abu Hamza al-Muhajer, the good fortune of carrying out the legitimate court's command in person." Pentagon
spokesman Bryan Whitman, when asked about the claim by the Shura Council that it was holding the soldiers, said they have no independent confirmation of that report. Another US soldier was killed and eight were wounded during the search operations.
On July 10, 2006, a video showing the bodies of Kristian Menchaca and Thomas Tucker was posted on an extremist website, purportedly by al-Qaida in Iraq. Although the video does not show the actual executions, it shows the two corpses laid out on a road and being taunted by the alleged captors, who present the head of Thomas Tucker to the camera like a trophy, and stomp on the head of Kristian Menchaca. The Mujahideen Shura Council
later claimed the killings to be in revenge for the rape and murder of Abeer Qassim Hamza al-Janabi on 12 March.
On September 23, 2006, a second mutilation video of the two soldiers was broadcasted on the internet. It shows the two soldiers being dragged on the streets and their bodies being set on fire. Thomas's head is kicked by an insurgent.
released a graphic video showing the bodies of PFC Thomas Lowell Tucker and PFC Kristian Menchaca, who were captured, tortured and beheaded by insurgents.
On September 23, 2006, a second mutilation video of the two soldiers was broadcast on the Internet. It shows the two soldiers being dragged on the streets and their bodies being set on fire.
Brownsville, Texas
Brownsville is a city in the southernmost tip of the state of Texas, in the United States. It is located on the northern bank of the Rio Grande, directly north and across the border from Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Brownsville is the 16th largest city in the state of Texas with a population of...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, was a United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
Private First Class (PFC) who was tortured, killed, and mutilated by Al-Qaeda in Iraq
Al-Qaeda in Iraq
Al-Qaeda in Iraq is a popular name for the Iraqi division of the international Salafi jihadi militant organization al-Qaeda. It is recognized as a part of the greater Iraqi insurgency....
. He was married to Christina Menchaca of Big Spring
Big Spring
-Places:United States* Big Spring, Texas* Big Spring, Wisconsin** Big Spring Independent School District in Big Spring, Texas.* Big Spring School District in Newville, Pennsylvania* Big Spring Township, Seneca County, Ohio...
in September 2005, before he was deployed to Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
.
Military life
Menchaca was one of two U.S. soldiers seized by the Mujahideen Shura CouncilMujahideen Shura Council
The Mujahideen Shura Council was an umbrella organization of at least six Sunni Islamist groups taking part in the Iraqi insurgency: Tenzheem Qa'adah al-Jihad , Jeish al-Taiifa al-Mansoura, Katbiyan Ansar Al-Tawhid wal Sunnah, Saray al-Jihad Group, al-Ghuraba Brigades, and al-Ahwal Brigades.The...
during an attack that left a third soldier SPC David J. Babineau shot to death on a roadside checkpoint on June 16, 2006, in Youssifiyah, Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
- an area known as the Triangle of Death. Menchaca was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 502d Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division
101st Airborne Division
The 101st Airborne Division—the "Screaming Eagles"—is a U.S. Army modular light infantry division trained for air assault operations. During World War II, it was renowned for its role in Operation Overlord, the D-Day landings on 6 June 1944, in Normandy, France, Operation Market Garden, the...
(Air Assault), Fort Campbell
Fort Campbell
Fort Campbell is a United States Army installation located astraddle the Kentucky-Tennessee border between Hopkinsville, Kentucky, and Clarksville, Tennessee...
, Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
. PFC Thomas Lowell Tucker
Thomas Lowell Tucker
Thomas Lowell Tucker from Madras, Oregon, was a Private First Class of the U.S. Army tortured, killed, and mutilated by Al-Qaeda in Iraq. He was one of two U.S. soldiers seized by the Mujahideen Shura Council during an attack that left a third soldier Spc. David J...
also went missing in that same incident. Residents in the area were offered $100,000 for any information leading to the finding of the soldiers but they refused.
On June 20, 2006, military sources reported that the bodies believed to be Tucker and Menchaca were found in Youssifiyah. The corpses of two U.S. soldiers were mutilated and booby-trapped, with improvised explosive device
Improvised explosive device
An improvised explosive device , also known as a roadside bomb, is a homemade bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action...
s on the road leading to them. Senior Iraqi general Major General Abdul-Aziz Mohammed told Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
that the men were tortured and killed in a barbaric way. Relatives of Menchaca reported they had been notified that his body had been found. Mujahedeen Shura Council, a group linked to al Qaeda said in their statement: "We announce the good news to our Islamic nation that God's will was executed and the two crusader animals we had in captivity were slaughtered"..."And God has given our Emir, Abu Hamza al-Muhajer, the good fortune of carrying out the legitimate court's command in person." Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
spokesman Bryan Whitman, when asked about the claim by the Shura Council that it was holding the soldiers, said they have no independent confirmation of that report. Another US soldier was killed and eight were wounded during the search operations.
On July 10, 2006, a video showing the bodies of Kristian Menchaca and Thomas Tucker was posted on an extremist website, purportedly by al-Qaida in Iraq. Although the video does not show the actual executions, it shows the two corpses laid out on a road and being taunted by the alleged captors, who present the head of Thomas Tucker to the camera like a trophy, and stomp on the head of Kristian Menchaca. The Mujahideen Shura Council
Mujahideen Shura Council
The Mujahideen Shura Council was an umbrella organization of at least six Sunni Islamist groups taking part in the Iraqi insurgency: Tenzheem Qa'adah al-Jihad , Jeish al-Taiifa al-Mansoura, Katbiyan Ansar Al-Tawhid wal Sunnah, Saray al-Jihad Group, al-Ghuraba Brigades, and al-Ahwal Brigades.The...
later claimed the killings to be in revenge for the rape and murder of Abeer Qassim Hamza al-Janabi on 12 March.
On September 23, 2006, a second mutilation video of the two soldiers was broadcasted on the internet. It shows the two soldiers being dragged on the streets and their bodies being set on fire. Thomas's head is kicked by an insurgent.
Family response
Mario Vasquez, the uncle of Kristian Menchaca, stated that he and the family heard about his nephew's death by watching television, when Iraqi Maj. Gen. Abdul-Aziz Mohammed announced the finding in a statement early Tuesday June 20, 2006. Ken MacKenzie, another uncle, stated that "The U.S. government did not have a plan in place, my nephew has paid for it with his life. The government should have offered a $100 million reward and offered to exchange mujahideen detainees for the soldiers' lives. It seized enough money from Saddam Hussein to afford it."Execution video
On July 11, 2006, the Mujahideen Shura CouncilMujahideen Shura Council
The Mujahideen Shura Council was an umbrella organization of at least six Sunni Islamist groups taking part in the Iraqi insurgency: Tenzheem Qa'adah al-Jihad , Jeish al-Taiifa al-Mansoura, Katbiyan Ansar Al-Tawhid wal Sunnah, Saray al-Jihad Group, al-Ghuraba Brigades, and al-Ahwal Brigades.The...
released a graphic video showing the bodies of PFC Thomas Lowell Tucker and PFC Kristian Menchaca, who were captured, tortured and beheaded by insurgents.
On September 23, 2006, a second mutilation video of the two soldiers was broadcast on the Internet. It shows the two soldiers being dragged on the streets and their bodies being set on fire.
Iraqi judicial proceedings
In October 2008, an Iraqi judge sentenced Ibrahim Karim Muhammed Salih al-Qaraghuli to death for the abduction, torture, and murder of Menchaca and Tucker. An expert witness stated that al-Qaraghuli's fingerprints matched photographs of bloody prints found on the front panel of the truck from which the two men were dragged. Two other men were acquitted and released due to a lack of evidence.See also
- Mahmudiyah incidentMahmudiyah incidentThe Mahmudiyah killings and gang-rape of a 14-year-old girl by U.S. troops occurred on March 12, 2006, in a house to the southwest of Yusufiyah, a village to the west of the town of Al-Mahmudiyah, Iraq. Five United States Army soldiers of the 502nd Infantry Regiment were charged with the crimes: ...
- Thomas Lowell TuckerThomas Lowell TuckerThomas Lowell Tucker from Madras, Oregon, was a Private First Class of the U.S. Army tortured, killed, and mutilated by Al-Qaeda in Iraq. He was one of two U.S. soldiers seized by the Mujahideen Shura Council during an attack that left a third soldier Spc. David J...
- Keith Maupin
External links
- Mujahideen Shura council of Iraq adopts the kidnapping of the two American soldiers near to al-Yosofiah area
- Military Confirms Deaths of Missing Texas and Oregon Soldiers
- video of Menchaca's uncle Ken MacKenzie being interviewed
- Military says at least one of kidnapped soldiers was beheaded
- U.S. Department of Defense - News Release