10/16/2009
A former civilian defense contractor accused of sexually assaulting a female co-worker at an Iraqi air base pleaded guilty Friday to abusive sexual contact.
David Charles Breda Jr., 34, of Pearland, was ordered to remain in federal custody pending sentencing Jan. 15. The guilty plea could mean up to two years in prison and lifetime status as a registered sexual offender for Breda.
Prosecutors alleged Breda jumped and fondled the woman in October 2008 at Camp Al Asad, Iraq, where he worked for a subsidiary of Houston-based KBR Inc. Breda was a former Army recruiter who also had been punished for inappropriate sexual behavior with an 18-year-old federal recruit, according to testimony at a detention hearing following Breda's arrest in July.
Breda's indictment marked the latest allegation of sexual assault involving civilians working for contractors in Iraq. The indictment did not identify the woman in his case, and it is not known whether she also worked for the contractor.
Jamie Leigh Jones, formerly of Conroe, Texas, drew national attention in 2007 when she went public with allegations she was raped by co-workers while working for KBR/Halliburton in 2005. The Associated Press usually does not identify people alleging sexual assault, but Jones' face and name have been broadcast in media reports and on her own Web site.
After Jones testified about the assault before a congressional committee, other women also said they were sexually assaulted while in Iraq and testified before Congress. It's unclear whether prosecutors filed any criminal charges based on those allegations.
KBR and Halliburton, which split in 2007, have disputed Jones' account of how the companies responded to her allegations.