Maddox, the man who found Saddam, visits Pittsburgh

PITTSBURGH — After an extensive hunt and countless interrogations, former Army intelligence officer Eric Maddox made the catch of a lifetime when he orchestrated “Black List #1,” the operation that located and eventually led to the capture of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.

Maddox grew up in the small town of Sapulpa, Oklahoma, where he lived a regular life. After finishing college at the University of Oklahoma, Maddox considered going to grad school before opting to head into the military.

"I was going to go to law school," Maddox said. "I was going to be white-collar, right? I had a calling. I had to serve my country."

From there, Maddox took a leap of faith and eventually became an Army Airborne Ranger.

"I didn't know where it would lead me. I didn't know what it would do," Maddox said. "I was just called to be a grunt, and I went in as an Airborne Ranger, and I loved it."

In 2003, Maddox was deployed to Tikrit. As a rookie interrogator, he joined a task force responsible for tracking down Hussein.

"'There's nobody important in Tikrit. We just need you to take the heat off the guys that were busy,'" Maddox said he was told.

Over five months, Maddox interrogated more than 300 prisoners. He said it was initially hard getting people to speak.

“Emotionally, it was tough. There (were) definitely more failures than there were successes,” Maddox said. “We didn’t find him until the very end of my tour.”

Finally, on December 13, 2003, Maddox put all the pieces together, and Saddam Hussein was captured just outside of Tikrit.

“It was the happiest day of my life,” Maddox said.

Following the capture, former United States Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld approached Maddox to ask if he wanted the opportunity to interrogate Hussein. Maddox respectfully declined.
"I didn't need to meet him. I didn't need to do a celebrity pic," he said. "The mission was to find him, and I found him."

Now, Maddox looks to carry on with his life as an American hero. Since the capture he has received many accolades, including the National Intelligence Medal of Achievement, the Defense Intelligence Agency Director’s Award, the Legion of Merit and the Bronze Star.

Maddox teamed up with Operation StrongVet on Wednesday at Pittsburgh’s Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall and Museum to share his story about the capture.

WPXI