C10 - Murder of RAAF airman - Orgill

Flight Sergeant J. Orgill of the Royal Australian Air Force was captured after his aircraft was shot down near Tomohon in northern Celebes during July or August 1945. He and two other members of the crew became prisoners of war in Japanese custody.

While under guard, one of the prisoners seized a Japanese guard's bayonet and attempted to attack him. The guard responded by repeatedly striking the prisoner, inflicting severe injuries. The prisoner later died from those injuries. The Australian prosecution alleged that the force used was excessive and unlawful, resulting in the death of Flight Sergeant Orgill while he was a prisoner of war.

As a captured member of the Allied armed forces, Orgill was protected by the laws and customs of war. Even where a prisoner resisted or attempted to escape, guards were permitted to use only such force as was reasonably necessary to regain control. The infliction of fatal injuries beyond that required to subdue a prisoner constituted an unlawful killing.

Following Japan's surrender, Australian investigators examined the circumstances surrounding Orgill's death through witness testimony and other evidence. Their findings resulted in Australian War Crimes Trial M29, in which those responsible for the fatal assault were prosecuted.