Soldier watches twin brother die after Basra horror (From The Argus)

Soldier watches twin brother die after Basra horror

5:46pm Thursday 13th December 2007 in News By Damien Pearse

A soldier saw his twin brother die after he was wounded in Iraq on their 24th birthday, an inquest heard today.

Corporal Will Rigby, of 4th Battalion The Rifles, was with his brother, Corporal John Rigby, at a military hospital in Basra as his life ebbed away.

Cpl John Rigby, also of 4 Rifles, was returning to Basra Palace following an operation on June 22 this year when at 6am a wire-controlled improvised explosive projectile hit the Bulldog armoured vehicle he was in at a road junction.

He died during a period of intense fighting in Basra, when 4 Rifles were at the forefront of the British Army's efforts to quell the insurgency in readiness for the handover of Basra Palace to local control in September.

Cpl Rigby was in the rear top cover sentry position, with his head poking out of the top of the vehicle, at the time of the blast. After the smoke and dust cleared, Cpl Rigby, from Rye, East Sussex, was found unconscious but still alive.

A thin fragment of shrapnel pierced his helmet, going into his skull and causing fatal brain damage, the hearing at Trowbridge Town Hall in Wiltshire heard. The cause of death was given as fragmentation wounds to the head.

Wiltshire Coroner David Masters, recording a verdict of unlawful killing, said: "His twin brother was present at the time (he died)."

The coroner said: "He was murdered. The verdict for me to record is one of unlawful killing."

Mr Masters, quoting Patrick Sanders, commander of 4 Rifles added: "John was an astonishingly dedicated and charismatic leader."

Alan Hepper, an MoD armour expert, said the shrapnel fragment's velocity was simply too great for his latest-model Mark 6 Alpha helmet to withstand.

Cpl Rigby's father Doug voiced concern to Colonel Timothy Martin, who sets MoD policy on troops' protective gear, about soldiers being expected to do top cover without additional armour to shield them.

The colonel sympathised, adding: "The vulnerability of these top cover sentries is a matter of huge concern."

Rifleman William Long, recalling the explosion, said: "I ducked my head down, there was dust and debris everywhere.

"I looked around and I saw Riggers drop his weapon and he fell down straight away. I was tapping him on the cheek but I got no response. Then I saw blood coming down his forehead."

Lieutenant Thomas Knight, who was also in the vehicle, said the force of the explosion broke the tracking on the right hand side of the Bulldog, destroying the steering.

The twins joined the Army aged 16, after entering the Guinness Book of Records as the first twins to go to the North Pole as part of an expedition when they were 15.

Cpl Rigby had been due for promotion to sergeant after passing his exams with the highest marks in his regiment, five years ahead of his peers.

He was reportedly nicknamed "Goldenballs", owing to the widespread view that he was the "David Beckham of squaddies".

His brother Will returned home recently with his regiment, who paraded through Salisbury city centre earlier this week.

The battalion lost five men during the six-month tour. The 4 Rifles battle group, to which soldiers from other regiments were attached, lost 11 men overall.