Gaywood man machine gunned
A SECURITY officer who was shot several times when machine-gun fire ripped through his unprotected vehicle while working in Iraq is seeking £300,000 in damages amid claims he was supplied with substandard protective equipment.
Leonard Caunt (55), of Gayton Road, Gaywood, was shot in the shoulder and suffered shrapnel wounds to the leg after the convoy he was travelling in was attacked by insurgents using a pick-up truck with a rear-mounted machine gun near Baghdad in November 2003.
A burst of machine-gun fire ripped through the Toyota Land Cruiser he was driving and a bullet struck his left shoulder, while shrapnel hit his left leg and thigh.
A second burst of bullets then deflated the tyres and disabled his vehicle and Mr Caunt was also shot in the right elbow, forearm and left hand and received further shrapnel wounds to his left hand.
Solicitors acting on behalf of Mr Caunt have served a High Court writ against his former employer, Global Strategies Group, seeking damages exceeding 300,000 for the personal injuries he suffered.
The writ claims that the body armour he was supplied with did not cover the neck and shoulders and the vehicle he was driving had no armour whatsoever.
In his role with Global Strategies Group Mr Caunt had been helping to provide protection and security services for American agencies operating in Iraq.
It is claimed that on his arrival in the country he was supplied with body armour which only covered his torso, not his shoulders and neck, and a fully-armoured Jeep, which was later replaced by a soft-skinned Toyota Land Cruiser with no armour at all.
It is also alleged that a month before the attack Mr Caunt had asked for a short stock semi-automatic rifle, since the Beretta he had was inadequate and a standard rifle could not be used within the confines of a Land Cruiser. However, the request was not acted upon.
At the time of the attack he was driving a vehicle to the rear of a convoy travelling towards Al Iskandariyah, south of Baghdad.
The purpose of the mission was to scout for the location of banks ahead of a later delivery of cash.
But as he travelled towards the town a white pick-up truck pulled alongside his vehicle and opened fire.
After the Land Cruiser ground to a halt Mr Caunt managed to escape the area by forcing his way into a passing car which took him to safety.
The writ claims 11 points of negligence against Global Strategies Group including failure to provide an armoured vehicle, failure to provide adequate body armour and a failure to provide sufficient numbers of men in support.
Nobody from Global Strategies Group Ltd was available for comment at the time of going to press.
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