The 120-member 343rd is based in Rock Hill, S.C., but has members from Mississippi, including a sergeant in Thompson's district. The refueling mission, the Army's statement said, was later conducted by other members of the same unit.
"There was nobody arrested," Lt. Col. Christopher Rodney said late Friday. "They've been interviewed. There's going to be what we call a 'safety stand down' just to look at the issues."
He added: "We can't tolerate breakdowns in discipline."
Thompson's office received a letter from Patricia McCook of Jackson, Miss., on Thursday, relating concerns about her husband, Sgt. Larry McCook, and 16 others "being detained or possibly arrested in Iraq," said the congressman's legislative assistant, Karis T. Gutter. The office had received earlier correspondence concerning "ill-equipped vehicles," he said.
Looks like this has been in the pipeline for a while, and McCook is the likely conduit.
The bit about the fuel oil this platoon was charged to deliver being contaminated with water is also suspicious. It was refused at one destination due to contamination, and yet they were ordered to deliver it to another destination. I guess that makes sense if the reason was for disposal, but how did it get contaminated in the first place?
He said he got the letter on Thursday? When did this incident take place? I don't think it's possible for him to have gotten a letter by Thursday.
From the Daily News article (linked in original post):
Some members of the South Carolina-based 343rd Quartermaster Company refused to transport fuel between the Iraqi cities of Tallil and Taji Wednesday morning
If the timing on this can be verified this may be our first "smoking gun."
I read that it was helicopter fuel contaminated with diesel fuel, not water.
In another thread, the story is being spun to say they are acting like heroes for refusing to deliever the stuff, potentially saving other's lives.
Their story is two pronged, mission too dangerous & the fuel taint angle.