A British Army soldier faces a manslaughter charge for allegedly killing a Fiji-born comrade by blasting him in the head with a sniper rifle in Iraq.
Fiji Live online says Britain's Sun paper reported that military police believe Rifleman Aaron Kendrick cocked, aimed and fired the weapon inside barracks as "a stupid joke".
He had no idea the high-velocity rifle was loaded as he pointed it at Rifleman Edward Vakabua, 23, while he slept a few yards away in Basra.
Vakabua was killed instantly.
During the probe into the shooting, detectives from the Red Caps' Special Investigations Branch discovered Kendrick, in his early 20s, was never trained to use a sniper rifle.
Vakabua - described as tough, proud, indomitable and courageous - was buried in Fiji after the shooting on July 6 last year.
Charges for the killing will be pressed against Kendrick by the Army Prosecuting Authority this week, military sources told The Sun.
If convicted, he faces a long spell in the Glasshouse - the military's prison at Colchester, Essex.
