Next Trump Pardon? This Green Beret is Under Fire for Killing Known Terrorist

Two years ago, Major Matthew Golsteyn was a highly-decorated Green Beret who served with honor in Afghanistan as part of the 3rd Special Forces Group.

During the Battle of Marjah, a hidden IED claimed the lives of two marines under his command. (RedState)
 

Golsteyn and his men tracked down the suspect and detained him. He refused to answer questions. Because this suspect “was not on a list of targets U.S. forces were cleared to kill,” the rules of engagement required him to be released. Believing this man to be responsible for the deaths of his men and afraid that once released, the suspect would target the Afghanistan soldiers in his unit, Golsteyn killed him. He then dug a pit and burned him.

In 2011, Golsteyn applied for a job with the CIA for which he was required to take a polygraph test. He admitted he had killed this man a year earlier. A military tribunal then opened an investigation into the incident, but Golsteyn was eventually cleared.

In 2016, Golsteyn appeared on Fox News’s Special Report and was interviewed by Brett Baier. Baier asked him if he killed the suspect and Golsteyn said yes.

Golsteyn added, “There’s limits on how long you can hold guys. You realize quickly that you make things worse. It is an inevitable outcome that people who are cooperating with coalition forces, when identified, will suffer some terrible torture or be killed.”

Golsteyn’s admission served as the catalyst for a new investigation.

This week prosecutors formally charged the former special ops warrior with murder.

U.S. Army Special Operations Command spokesman Lt. Col. Loren Bymer commented to Fox News: “Major Matthew Golsteyn’s immediate commander has determined that sufficient evidence exists to warrant the preferral of charges against him. Major Golsteyn has been charged with the murder of an Afghan male during his 2010 deployment to Afghanistan.”

Under the Obama Administration, rules of engagement were severely restricted. Nearly 75 percent of all American fatalities in the 17-year war occurred while President Obama was in office.

The deadliest year for U.S. personnel was 2010.