The Army has accused an 82nd Airborne brigadier general of sexual
crimes, adultery and other offenses over inappropriate relationships
with several women under his command, U.S. military officials said
today.
Brig. Gen. Jeffrey A. Sinclair, who was deputy commander of logistics and support for the 82nd Airborne Division in Afghanistan, was ordered back to Fort Bragg, N.C., in May, unidentified military officials told the Associated Press. He has not been arrested.
The Fayetteville Observer lists
the charges: forcible sodomy; wrongful sexual conduct; attempted
violation of an order; violations of regulations by wrongfully engaging
in inappropriate relationships and misusing a government travel charge
card; violating general orders by possessing alcohol and pornography
while deployed; maltreatment of subordinates; filing fraudulent claims;
engaging in conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman; and engaging
in conduct prejudicial to good order and discipline, or of a nature to
bring discredit upon the armed forces.
Sinclair, whose 27-year
career has included three deployments to Afghanistan, two tours in Iraq
and one tour in the first Gulf war, now faces an Article 32
investigation, the military equivalent of a preliminary hearing, to
determine if he should be court-martialed.
The Army did not say
in May exactly why Sinclair was relieved of command and recalled. A Fort
Bragg official said only that it was "a criminal investigation," The Fayetteville Observer reported at the time.
AP says a Fort Bragg spokesman would not take questions today after announcing the charges at a brief news conference, saying they must be submitted in writing.
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