Cache discovered in soccer field, five detained during joint search operation
BALAD, Iraq – Five suspected insurgents were detained and a cache was discovered in a soccer field during a joint search operation March 17, conducted in an effort to decrease and interrupt insurgent activity.
Soldiers with the 1st Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 4th Iraqi Army Division and 1-8 Combined Arms Battalion, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Task Force Band of Brothers, cordoned off a large area suspected of insurgent activity.
Two of the five locations searched produced results. At one of the two locations, four suspected insurgents were detained. At the second location, a nearby soccer field, a cache was discovered and the fifth suspected insurgent was detained.
Stashed in the field was: one Soviet .50 caliber rifle, one Soviet anti-aircraft gun, one AK-47, one PKC machine gun, four rocket-propelled grenade launchers, six RPG rounds, 28 mortars, seven rockets, 100 pounds of C4 explosive, six hand grenades, two mines and other IED making materials.
The five detainees were taken to a secured location for further questioning.