A U.S. Marine detained last month after superiors discovered a then-missing teenager in his barracks has been charged with assaulting a minor — though officials are still waiting to identify the soldier until a preliminary hearing or a court-martial.
Aired in an update to the agency’s internal arm on Saturday, the statement declined to disclose the unnamed marine’s age or rank, but revealed he also faces another, “unrelated” charge of violating law. ‘freedom restrictions’.
The term refers to provisions that military superiors regularly enforce to prevent harm to others wherever soldiers are stationed — including generally accepted principles such as no drug use, no public drunkenness, and no fighting.
Also banned are instances of sexual assault — something the family of the 14-year-old who found at the California Marine base camp said she was a victim of after she went missing 18 days earlier.
Also unnamed, the girl went missing on June 10 — and members of her family have since claimed she was sold as a sex slave to a Marine stationed at the base, San Diego County’s Camp Pendleton.
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The Marine — who officials say will not be named until an upcoming preliminary hearing or a possible court-martial — will be brought in for questioning on July 2 before being released. He has since been charged with assaulting a minor
The allegations relate to a then-missing girl, 14, found at the Camp Pendelton base in California in June, several weeks after she went missing. Members of her family have since claimed she was sold as a sex slave to a Marine stationed at the base
Those claims aired less than a week ago, paving the way for 1st Marine Logistics Group’s somewhat vague statement over the weekend.
“Military prosecutors have charged the Marine with allegations of sexual assault of a minor and violation of the restraining order from an earlier, unrelated case,” said Captain Charles Palmer, a spokesman for the group, which is stationed at Camp Pendleton.
Palmer further revealed how he and Marine Brass will identify the man, saying his name will not be released to the public until one of the charges is court-martialed or his name is put on file during a preliminary hearing.
The hearing, the senior officer added, is scheduled for next Thursday, where officials will discuss the two charges with the soldier present.
Palmer previously confirmed that the Marine in question was the same man seen in a video posted to social media showing a soldier being led away by military police outside one of the camp’s barracks on July 2.
That video was recorded less than four days after the unnamed girl was found in one of the barracks, prompting the current investigation.
“After the preliminary hearing, the warrant will review all charges and evidence to determine whether the case should be tried by court-martial,” Palmer added.
“To protect the integrity of the ongoing research and the rights of the subject, further information is not available until this decision is made.
“As a reminder, allegations remain allegations and all military personnel are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.”
The girl’s aunt, Casaundra Perez, told authorities her niece — who she says has a learning disability — was sold to the Marine for sex and that alleged officials may have been working on a cover-up.
Speaking to NBC San Diego, Perez called on fellow service members to come forward and shout out what happened on the base
The update came more than a month away from the discovery by officials of the then-missing 14-year-old, who was found by military police during the day in an unspecified barracks on June 28.
The update came more than a month away from the discovery by officials of the then-missing 14-year-old, who was found by military police during the day in an unspecified barracks on June 28.
About two weeks earlier, her grandmother, the girl’s legal guardian, reported her missing and told police in the LA-San Diego district that she had run away four days earlier, on June 9.
After she was found, detectives from the San Diego Sheriff’s Office interviewed her and offered her family support services, before finally returning her to her grandmother.
The girl was not hospitalized, officials said, but it was also not specified if she suffered any injuries.
The Marine was then apprehended by military police a few days later, before being briefly questioned and detained, and eventually released.
Still identified, he was allowed to command as the investigation continued — even after relatives of the girl he allegedly victimized came forward and claimed the agency took part in a cover-up.
At a news conference last week, relatives of the still-unnamed teen claimed she was “trafficked and raped” at the prominent Marine Corps camp, where visitors are generally stopped by waiting Marines at the entrance.
Cassaudra Perez, the girl’s aunt, told reporters Monday she was frustrated with the agency’s handling of the investigations, drawing attention to what she said was a deliberate lack of transparency by NCIS.
Even now that the girl is in her grandmother’s care, Perez said she fears military officials will retaliate against her family.
“If I go missing or get killed, those who might be responsible could be right here at Camp Pendleton,” she said in a recent video uploaded to TikTok.
Officials’ investigations into the two unspecified cases, meanwhile, are still ongoing and updates are not expected until later in the week.