Issue Date: January 26, 2004

5 held in weapons-theft case
Missing equipment includes blasting caps and explosives

By C. Mark Brinkley
Times staff writer

CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. — In the end, it was an attempt to sell a $20,000 explosives-detonation device to an undercover agent that brought the whole thing down, a source familiar with the case said.
The source familiar with the growing scandal at 2nd Combat Engineer Battalion — where a sergeant, two corporals and two lance corporals are charged with various theft and conspiracy charges — said one Marine was caught in November trying to sell an Mk-152 remote detonation kit to an undercover Naval Criminal Investigative Service agent.

“Once that occurred, he led them to the others,” said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity.

What unfolded was an alleged plot involving more than $160,000 in stolen bomb-making materials, weapons parts and tools, leading to a laundry list of criminal charges against the five Marines.

Investigators are remaining quiet on the case, for fear of jeopardizing what is shaping up to be a slam-dunk case for the Corps.

“These investigations are still ongoing,” said Special Agent Kevin Dodds, assistant special agent in charge of the NCIS field office here. “There’s not a whole lot more that we can add at this point.”

The suspects — all combat engineers with Alpha Company, 2nd CEB — and the charges are:

• Sgt. Joshua J. Giddings, 26, of Preston, Iowa, arrested and placed in pretrial confinement Nov. 14. He is charged with attempting to wrongfully dispose of military property, conspiracy to steal and wrongfully dispose of military property, conspiracy to obstruct justice, wrongful disposition of military property, five counts of theft of military property, wrongfully impeding an investigation and possession of a machine gun.

Giddings has waived his Article 32 evidentiary hearing and his case has been forwarded to Maj. Gen. Stephen T. Johnson, 2nd Marine Division commanding general, for determination on whether to proceed with a general court-martial or other type of trial.

Giddings entered the Marine Corps on Oct. 16, 2000.

• Cpl. Kevin J. Lambert, 20, of Holly, Mich., arrested and placed in pretrial confinement Nov. 14. He is charged with two counts of attempting to wrongfully dispose of military property, conspiracy to steal and wrongfully dispose of military property, two counts of wrongful disposition of military property, seven counts of theft of military property, two counts of receiving stolen property and distribution of explosives.

Lambert entered the Marine Corps on Sept. 17, 2001.

• Lance Cpl. Jeremy W. Clark, 26, of Duquoin, Ill., arrested and placed in pretrial confinement Nov. 18. He is charged with attempting to wrongfully dispose of military property, conspiracy to steal and wrongfully dispose of military property, conspiracy to obstruct justice, wrongful disposition of military property, 12 counts of theft of military property and wrongfully impeding an investigation.

Clark also waived his Article 32 hearing and his case has been forwarded to Johnson. He entered the Marine Corps on Oct. 16, 2001.

• Cpl. Benjamin H. Garcia, 23, of Las Cruces, N.M., arrested and placed on pretrial restriction Nov. 24. He is charged with attempting to wrongfully dispose of military property, conspiracy to steal and wrongfully dispose of military property, wrongful disposition of military property, three counts of theft of military property and wrongfully impeding an investigation.

Garcia entered the Marine Corps on May 8, 2000.

• Lance Cpl. Joel M. Peters, 25, of Ithaca, Mich., arrested and placed on pretrial restriction Nov. 24. He is charged with attempting to wrongfully dispose of military property, wrongful disposition of military property, four counts of theft of military property and wrongfully impeding an investigation.

Peters entered the Marine Corps on Feb. 23, 2000.

The stolen property includes Mk-152 remote detonating kits, detonation cord, C-4 explosives, nonelectric blasting caps, breaching kits, tool kits and various other tools, Marine officials said. Giddings also is charged with possession of a machine gun, but base officials have not confirmed the type of weapon or whether it was stolen from the Corps’ inventory.

The Marine Corps has not disclosed which stolen items, if any, have been recovered.

In November, base officials said investigators became aware of the thefts after receiving a tip.

“An investigation was initiated after information was provided to Naval Criminal Investigative Service that a Marine within the unit was in possession of government property,” base officials said Nov. 18. “Because the matter is still under investigation, no further information is available at this time.”

Marines familiar with the investigation said Jan. 14 that no additional information was released because investigators hoped to make more arrests in the case. No more arrests are expected now unless further information is uncovered during the investigation.

Another source familiar with the investigation said the whole thing seems blown out of proportion.

“It’s not like that Operation Longfuse stuff four or five years ago,” said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, making reference to an NCIS sting operation that led to the conviction of six Marines for weapons theft. “These guys didn’t plot to do this and this and this. It’s not like they broke into a warehouse and stole these items to sell. It’s not as organized as it sounds.”

http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/stor...ER-2561202.php

Sempers,

Roger