Daniel Coburn Daniel Coburn is a member of the United States Marine Corps . He came to prominence in an incident where he accused his platoon commander , Ilario Pantano , of shooting two unarmed captives while on patrol in Mahmudiyah , Iraq on April 15 , 2004 . Coburn ' s accusation was at odds with Pantano ' s account of events which stated that the shootings were done in self - defence as he was rushed by the insurgent prisoners . Coburn ' s accusation led to Pantano being charged with murder but was later cleared of any wrongdoing . April 15th incident . As the platoon approached a compound in Haditha , they saw a vehicle with two Iraqis in it . Pantano ordered his men to stop the vehicle and to have the occupants of the vehicle handcuffed . The vehicle was searched for weapons . Lieutenant Pantano remained with the captives , while the rest of his platoon secured the compound . The compound was deserted , but his men found a cache of arms , including " several mortar aiming stakes , a flare gun , three AK47 rifles , 10 AK magazines with assault vests and IED making material . " When Pantano learned that the compound contained weapons , he ordered Sergeant Daniel Coburn and Corpsman George Gobles to watch for enemies . He then released the captives from their bonds . According to a statement Lieutenant Pantano made to military investigators in June 2004 , he then used hand signals to order the captives to search the vehicle again . According to Pantano , during the search of the vehicle he felt the Iraqis posed a threat to him . They were talking , and Pantano believed they were conspiring together . When they both turned to face each other , he shouted " Stop ! " in both Arabic and English , and when they did not , he shot them . After emptying his magazine , he continued to fire . He later stated : " I then changed magazines and continued to fire until the second magazine was empty . . . I had made a decision that when I was firing I was going to send a message to these Iraqis and others that when we say , ' No better friend , No worse enemy , ' we mean it . I had fired both magazines into the men , hitting them with about 80 percent of my rounds . " Indictment . In June 2004 , Sergeant Coburn registered a complaint about the incident , triggering a Naval Criminal Investigative Service probe . On February 1 , 2005 , Pantano was charged with two counts of premeditated murder , and faced the death penalty if convicted . Autopsy report . Prior to Pantano ' s Article 32 hearing the Department of Defense had maintained that it was impossible to do a post - mortem examination on the corpses of Lieutenant Pantano ' s captives because they were buried in a cemetery that was in an area that was not under U . S . control . However , shortly before the hearing , the bodies were exhumed after all . The autopsy report was released the day after the Article 32 recommendation was made and , according to the Washington Times , supported Lt . Pantano ' s version of events . Witnesses . Medical corpsman George Goble was present but did not witness the danger Lieutenant Pantano reported , because he was looking outwards , as ordered . He later stated when he turned back he saw the Iraqis trying to run away . Sergeant Coburn is reported to have said " As soon as I turned my back , Lt . Pantano opened [ fire ] with approximately 45 rounds . " Coburn , throughout the case , gave five distinctly separate versions of events . Lieutenant Pantano ' s defense counsels have said they believe that Sergeant Daniel Coburn ' s account should not be given any credit because he was disgruntled , having been demoted recently due in part to a poor performance evaluation by Pantano . Another witness , " Corporal ' O ' " , was an Arabic - speaking Nigerian - American in Pantano ' s platoon . His full name was kept confidential at Pantano ' s hearing because he is being trained for counter - intelligence duties . In his testimony at Pantano ' s hearing , Corporal " O " described interviewing the two captives . He described seeing the vehicle being searched by other Marines , including the removal of its seats . He described seeing the corpses of the captives , following the shooting , face down , with the heads and torsos in the vehicle and their knees resting on the ground , as if Pantano shot the captives in the back while they were kneeling facing the vehicle . Corporal " O " described the sight as " weird " . Sergeant Coburn was heavily criticized for some interviews he had given ( he was under a gag order ) as well as untruths concerning the evidence in the case . Coburn ' s internet statements . The blogosphere also played a major role . Coburn made remarks on Euphoric Reality during the case that were in direct contradiction of his statements to naval investigators . The blog owner turned in the comments to Pantano ' s attorney , who confronted Coburn on the stand with his own remarks in a dramatic cross - examination that resulted in Coburn being taken off the stand and read his Miranda rights . Coburn returned to the stand three days later after being granted immunity . Recommendations . Major Winn recommended to Major General Huck , commander of Lieutenant Pantano ' s division , that the murder charges be dropped . It was his assessment that Sergeant Coburn was an uncredible witness . He did , however , recommend that Pantano receive non - judicial punishment for conduct unbecoming an officer , for the sign he left on the corpses . He described Lieutenant Pantano ' s treatment of his captive ' s corpses as a " desecration " . Under U . S . military law , the decision as to whether a court - martial takes place was with General Huck . He decided not to refer the case to a court - martial .