đ¨I just got off the phone with a former Iraqi Sahwa commander who served with the Desert Brigade from its founding in 2005 until 2010. During that time, he frequently operated alongside Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 8th Marines in Ramadi, the capital of Al Anbar Province in western Iraq.
He shared some disturbing details about a Marine named Graham Planter. According to the commander, there was a recurring pattern involving their interpreter, who would arrange visits to a local woman running a prostitution house. She had several underage daughters. Planter and a couple of other Marines would go to the house, often setting up an observation point with their Iraqi counterparts.
The story took a darker turn when he described how it started. During what was supposed to be a routine raid on the home, they discovered it wasnât a terrorist hideout â it was a brothel operated by a single mother who had lost her husband. After that first encounter, the visits became regular.
Two or three Marines including the interpreter would disappear inside the house for an hour, sometimes up to an hour and a half. The Iraqi Sahwa fighters were always positioned outside, securing the area between the roof and the front gate. They were never allowed inside.
The commander was emphatic. He said he was 110% certain that Graham Planter and one or two others were paying for sex with both the mother and her underage daughters.