Jury finds Osan airman guilty of rape

Jury finds Osan airman guilty of rape
By Ashley Rowland, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Sunday, January 13, 2008

OSAN AIR BASE, South Korea — A court-martial panel found a 23-year-old airman guilty Friday of raping a female airman because he encouraged another airman to have sex with her — not because he raped her himself.

It took the seven-member jury 20 hours over two days to find Senior Airman Gabriel R. Contreras guilty of rape, conspiracy to commit an indecent act and housebreaking in the Feb. 10 incident. The panel found him not guilty of a charge of indecent assault. Contreras pleaded guilty to committing an indecent act when the trial began Tuesday.

The panel started sentencing deliberations Friday evening, but broke for the night and was to resume early Saturday.

Prosecutors asked the panel to sentence Contreras, a member of Osan’s 51st Munitions Squadron, to a reduction in rank to E-1, a dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of pay and five years in prison.

“The accused is not only a rapist, but he is the worst kind of rapist,” said prosecutor Capt. Erin Lai. “He didn’t jump out of the bushes. He had his fun … and invited a total stranger in. If not for him, (the woman) would not have been raped,” Lai said.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=51586



uhc comment: Previous thread on Contreras --> http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=259&topic_id=9625