Rob O’Neill, the Navy Seal that killed Osama bin Laden, broke his silence on the Bowe Bergdahl desertion trial last night.
On Friday, a military judge punished Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl with a demotion to the rank of private, a dishonorable discharge and a $10,000 fine. Prosecutors had urged the judge to sentence Bergdahl to 14 years behind bars, but the military judge, Colonel Jeffery R. Nance, did not order any prison time.
O’Neill was not very happy with the sentence handed down by the judge. Appearing on an evening talk show, O’Neill said “I said before I was going to keep my mouth shut hoping that the military judicial system would do something the right way”. “I think the judge dropped the ball”, added O’Neill. He went on to say that he thinks that the Judge has a personal issue with the current administration and the judge made a bad call.
For most of the interview O’Neill’s focus was on the military personnel that were injured and killed searching for Bergdahl after he deserted. He listed the names and the wounds suffered by those that were directly and indirectly affected by the search. O’Neill said his unit was also pulled from its normal duties to search for Bergdahl, adding that they would normally be on a mission to capture high value targets.
General Robert Abrams, the man who convened the court-martial, has the final word and will review the judge’s decision.
Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl was captured by the Taliban shortly after he abandoned his post in Afghanistan eight years ago. He was freed after Barrack Obama traded five high valued Taliban commanders for his release.
Image Credits: CRC Public Relations