Recruit Trapped in Dryer at Parris Island

Drill instructors at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island ordered a Muslim recruit into an industrial clothes dryer multiple times and turned it on, burning him, said the new Marine, in investigative documents released this week.The Muslim recruit, who graduated and moved on to training in Pensacola, Florida, was kept in the dryer long enough that his neck and arm started to burn.The documents reveal the extent of his and other Marine recruits’ alleged abuse at the hands of Marine Corps drill instructors and staff at MCRD Parris Island, South Carolina.The issues rose to the surface after the death of Raheel Siddiqui on March 18^th of this year, when he died after leaping from a stairwell landing that was nearly 40 feet high.He was running away from the very same drill instructor who threw another Muslim recruit in a dryer.“You’re going to kill us all the first chance you get aren’t you, terrorist?” one of the drill instructors allegedly said, according to Siddiqui. “What are your plans? Aren’t you a terrorist?”That drill instructor had slapped Siddiqui before he jumped.

Recruits Faced A "Culture of Hazing" at Parris Island

The death drew attention to the “culture of hazing” at Parris Island, long known for its exceptionally tough recruit training.Last week, officials in the Marine Corps announced that 20 members of Parris Island’s staff could likely face criminal charges or administrative discipline following three separate investigations into the abuse.It is possible that even more Parris Island Marines could be implicated in the scandal.Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Robert Neller said that while recruit depot would remain physically and mentally challenging, the manner in which Marines are made is as important as the final product.The drill instructors at Parris Island are accused of using ethnic and homophobic slurs, along with repeated, unauthorized additional physical training that occasionally injured recruits. At one point investigators concluded that Drill Instructors were drunk while working.The service will most likely proceed with criminal and administrative proceedings this fall.

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