Two troopers linked to the unsolved 2020 thriller surrounding the decapitation of Spc. Enrique Roman-Martinez have been convicted by courtroom martial after going through costs associated to conspiracy, disobeying orders and different non-violent offenses.
The convictions got here two years after a gaggle of seven troopers went tenting with Roman-Martinez on Memorial Day weekend, 2020. The group reported him lacking on Might 23, 2020 and fewer than every week later, Roman-Martinez’s head washed ashore close to Shackleford Banks Island, a part of North Carolina’s Outer Banks simply west of the place the troopers have been tenting.
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Roman-Martinez, 21, was assigned as a human assets specialist to the 82nd Airborne Division. He was initially from Chino, California.
The case has remained unsolved, with the reason for Roman-Martinez’s dying nonetheless unknown regardless of authorities treating the case as a murder.
All seven troopers who went tenting with Roman-Martinez have confronted minor costs — disobeying orders, conspiracy, or drug use — however the two convictions mark firsts for anybody concerned within the case.
Sgt. Samuel Moore, probably the most senior soldier within the group, was convicted on Friday, July 15 of conspiracy and two counts of creating a false assertion. He was diminished in rank to specialist and ordered to forfeit two-thirds of his pay for one month. It’s unclear when — if in any respect — he will probably be separated from the navy.
Spc. Alex Becerra was convicted in June of three counts of disobeying a superior officer and one depend of wrongful use of a managed substance. He was beforehand charged with conspiracy and making false statements, in keeping with Army public data, however was acquitted.
The Army confirmed that Becerra obtained a discount in rank to personal and has been separated from the navy, however wouldn’t affirm the characterization of his discharge citing privateness issues. The Fayetteville Observer was first to publish the small print of his courtroom martial, however his ejection from the navy has not beforehand been reported.
The Army maintains that the convictions are usually not straight linked to Roman-Martinez’s dying.
“These costs are associated to their actions on the identical time of his dying however not associated to his dying,” stated Fort Bragg spokesperson, Lt. Col. Brett Lea, in an electronic mail to Army.com.
The opposite 5 troopers have been charged with minor offenses, however haven’t been convicted.
The troopers who accompanied Roman-Martinez on the tour all made the journey regardless of a COVID-19 lockdown protocol at their dwelling base of Fort Bragg.
An post-mortem reportedly dominated Roman-Martinez’s dying a murder, however health workers couldn’t decide the trigger. The Army’s Prison Investigation Division is investigating the case as a murder, however has categorized his dying as a chilly case.
The Army Occasions reported that simply hours previous to calling 911 on Might 23, 2020 to report their buddy lacking, the group of troopers bumped into U.S. Park Rangers who requested them to maneuver their automobiles. Within the 911 name, one of many troopers stated that the group had been in search of the lacking paratrooper all day, making an attempt to find park rangers for assist.
CID has beforehand stated that brokers investigated the troopers for drug use.
The Army obtained criticism in the course of the case as properly, with Roman-Martinez’s household reporting a month after the tenting journey that legislation enforcement had not been forthcoming with data and CID releasing perplexing particulars concerning the case.
In August 2021, CID implied that Roman-Martinez could have been hit by a ship.
“Please perceive that murder principally signifies that somebody’s dying was attributable to another person,” stated CID Particular Agent Steve Chancellor in a press launch. “That signifies that the dying may have been intentional or it may have been unintentional — for instance on this case, somebody operating over somebody with a ship whereas the individual was within the water, and so forth.”
CID continues to supply a $50,000 reward for data linked to the case.
— Drew F. Lawrence could be reached at drew.lawrence@navy.com. Comply with him on Twitter @df_lawrence.
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