military issued statements saying Idema was impersonating government or military officials and did not represent either. He further tried to prove his official status when he claimed to be working for the US Counter Terrorism Group, the same group that some sources say he founded. He claimed his group had prevented assassination attempts on Education Minister Yunus Qanuni and Defense Minister Marshal Mohammad Qasim Fahim. He also claimed the FBI interrogated several militants captured by his group and that after his arrest, the FBI removed from his premises hundreds of videos, photos, and documents. Some of the pieces were later returned to Idema and his defense team. The DoD's only official contact with Idema was accepting one prisoner who was held for a month by the U.S. military, but added that officials declined his offer to work with the government in capturing terror suspects in Afghanistan. In early 2004, Idema was in contact with Heather Anderson, the Pentagon's Acting Director of Security. Anderson was under the supervision of the chief official responsible for intelligence matters in Donald Rumsfeld's office. Idema told the Afghan court that Anderson commended his work, but Anderson said she later turned down Idema's request to work in Afghanistan for the Pentagon. Idema continued to contact Anderson's office in hopes of establishing a relationship. Idema, Caraballo and Bennett were charged with entering the country illegally, running a private prison, and torture. John Tiffany served as Idema's attorney. During the trial, Idema charged that he, Caraballo, and Bennett were being beaten while in Afghan custody; however, U.S. authorities stated the men were being treated humanely. On 15 September 2004, a three-judge Afghan panel headed by Judge Abdul Baset Bakhtyari sentenced both Idema and Bennett to a ten-year prison term, while Caraballo received eight years. Idema and Bennett's sentences were later cut to five and three respectively. Caraballo claimed he was filming Idema and Bennett for a documentary on counterterrorism. Four Afghans working with Idema were sentenced to between one and five years imprisonment. Caraballo was later pardoned by President Hamid Karzai and returned to the United States. Bennett was released early for good behavior on September 30, 2006. Caraballo's lawyer said that the day before Caraballo left Afghanistan, Caraballo and Bennett lived in a filthy 6x8 ft. cell with four suspected Al-Qaeda members; the American prisoners were moved to a different prison for better protection. In a more