WASHINGTON, Feb. 17 (UPI) -- A North Carolina Marine facing two murder charges for an incident in Iraq has been threatened from Pakistan on the Internet, the Washington Times reports.
The threats against 2nd Lt. Ilario Pantano, 33, stem from the deaths last April 15 of two Iraqis near the town of Mahmudiya. Pantano was charged Feb. 1.
Pantano's mother, Merry , set up a Web site, defendthedefenders.org to explain her son's case and to raise money for his criminal defense. The site mysteriously crashed several times Tuesday and Wednesday. The family then discovered a similarly named site had been set up from Pakistan, depicting Pantano being beheaded.
Local authorities were notified, and the FBI is also investigating.
Meanwhile, several retired Marines set up a security watch around Pantano's home.
"It's a show of solidarity for Pantano," Charles Gittins, his civilian attorney said.
The prosecution's version of events will come out at a pretrial Article 32 hearing, which has yet to be scheduled. After the hearing, roughly equivalent to a grand jury investigation in the civilian justice system, an investigative officer decides whether to recommend a court-martial or to dismiss the charges.
