An internal State Department memorandum featured by the New York Times Monday reveals how the investigator, Jean C. Richter, alerted his superiors following the incident, only two weeks before Blackwater mercenaries shot and killed 17 Iraqi civillians in Nisour Square.
According to Richter, a Diplomatic Security special agent, Baghdad’s Blackwater project manager, Daniel Carroll, threatened to kill him at the end of the month long investigation.
“Mr. Carroll’s statement was made in a low, even tone of voice, his head was slightly lowered; his eyes were fixed on mine,” Richter’s memo stated. “I took Mr. Carroll’s threat seriously. We were in a combat zone where things can happen quite unexpectedly, especially when issues involve potentially negative impacts on a lucrative security contract.”