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An ex- Army sergeant major has been ordered to serve half a year in jail for sexually assaulting a 19-year-old soldier who afterwards ended her life.

Warrant Officer the former sergeant, forty-three, held down soldier the victim and tried to make physical contact in mid-2021. She was found dead five months later in her quarters at Larkhill military installation.

The defendant, who was judged at the Court Martial Centre in Wiltshire previously, will be sent to a correctional facility and registered as offender database for multiple years.

The victim's mother Leighann Mcready commented: "What he [Webber] did, and how the armed forces neglected to defend our daughter subsequently, led to her death."

Official Reaction

The armed forces stated it did not listen to the servicewoman, who was hailing from the Cumbrian village, when she reported the assault and has expressed regret for its response to her allegations.

Subsequent to an investigation of the tragic death, the accused admitted to the offense of physical violation in last fall.

Ms McCready commented her young woman should have been sitting with her relatives in court now, "to see the individual she accused brought to justice for what he did."

"Rather, we stand here without her, living a life sentence that no relatives should ever have to face," she added.

"She complied with procedures, but the accountable parties didn't follow theirs. Those failures broke our young woman utterly."

PA

Court Proceedings

The legal tribunal was told that the incident occurred during an field exercise at the exercise site, near the Hampshire area, in July 2021.

The accused, a ranking soldier at the period, attempted physical intimacy towards Gunner Beck subsequent to an social gathering while on assignment for a field training.

The victim claimed Webber stated he had been "anticipating an opportunity for them to be alone" before making physical contact, holding her against her will, and trying to kiss her.

She made official allegations against the sergeant subsequent to the incident, regardless of pressure by superiors to discourage her.

An inquest into her suicide found the Army's handling of the report played "more than a minimal role in her death."

Mother's Testimony

In a statement shared to the judicial body previously, the mother, expressed: "Our daughter had only become a teenager and will always be a young person full of vitality and joy."

"She had faith people to protect her and after what he did, the trust was shattered. She was extremely troubled and scared of Michael Webber."

"I witnessed the change personally. She felt powerless and betrayed. That incident broke her confidence in the structure that was meant to look after her."

Judge's Statement

While delivering judgment, The judicial officer the judge remarked: "We must evaluate whether it can be addressed in an alternative approach. We do not believe it can."

"We have determined the gravity of the offence means it can only be resolved by immediate custody."

He spoke to the defendant: "She had the strength and intelligence to demand you halt and instructed you to go to bed, but you carried on to the degree she considered she would remain in danger from you even when she went back to her assigned barracks."

He stated further: "The following day, she made the complaint to her relatives, her friends and her military superiors."

"Subsequent to the allegations, the unit opted to deal with you with minimal consequences."

"You underwent questioning and you acknowledged your behavior had been inappropriate. You prepared a apology note."

"Your career continued without interruption and you were subsequently elevated to Warrant Officer 1."

Further Details

At the investigation into the soldier's suicide, the official examiner said military leadership influenced her to withdraw the complaint, and only reported it to a military leadership "after information had leaked."

At the period, the accused was given a "minor administrative action interview" with no serious repercussions.

The investigation was further advised that only a short time after the incident the servicewoman had further been facing "persistent mistreatment" by a different service member.

A separate service member, her commanding individual, sent her over four thousand six hundred SMS communications declaring attachments for her, accompanied by a multi-page "romantic narrative" outlining his "fantasies about her."

Personal collection

Organizational Reaction

The military leadership said it provided its "sincerest condolences" to the soldier and her family.

"We will always be sincerely regretful for the deficiencies that were identified at the official inquiry in February."

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