One of the US Army reservists charged with abusing inmates at Abu Ghraib prison admitted at a pre-trial hearing today that he initially lied to a military investigator by saying he did not take part in the maltreatment.

A military judge hearing pre-trial evidence in the alleged abuse of prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison pressed the US government today to speed up its investigations, warning that delays could derail the case against at least one of the accused soldiers.

A US ARMY investigator yesterday told a hearing for Private Lynndie England, accused of abusing Iraqi inmates, that her boyfriend was a “ringleader” at Abu Ghraib prison.

Iraqi detainees at Abu Ghraib prison identified Lynndie England as one of the soldiers who abused them, an army investigator testified today.