No Way For The “Best Of The Best” To Behave

A chopper crashes in NYC….that is a local story not a national one……and yet this, the story below, does not make the cut for the crap the MSM prefers to feed the public.

I have been writing about the death of a US Green Beret at the hands of two fellow Special Ops troopers…SEALs and Marine Raiders….if you care to get caught up….

https://lobotero.com/2019/05/20/death-in-mali-is-justice-served/

https://lobotero.com/2018/11/13/more-on-the-death-in-mali/

https://lobotero.com/2018/11/27/death-in-mali-continued/

Recently the truth and nothing but the truth has come out in the trials of the murderers…..https://lobotero.com/2019/05/20/death-in-mali-is-justice-served/

I thought that it was pathetic that these elite soldiers were acting like spoiled Frat Rats…..and then the “rest of the story” was released……

The story of how an Army Green Beret staff sergeant died at the hands of four fellow special operators while on a tour in Bamako, Mali two years ago has evolved over time as leaked information and finally official charges and a guilty plea from one of the defendants laid out details of the man’s death.

One of the remaining three co-defendants, a Marine Raider, is set to plead guilty to charges connected to what lead to the strangulation death of Staff Sgt. Logan Melgar. But documents obtained by The Washington Post add new details that were not previously revealed.

The Post reported Wednesday that through a stipulation of facts document it obtained and verified that not only were the two Navy SEALs and two Marine Raiders going to assault, duct tape and video record the illegal hazing of Melgar, but that they also planned to have a Malian man who was present sexually assault the 34-year-old staff sergeant on video.

https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-army/2019/06/05/raiders-seals-planned-sexual-assault-in-green-beret-hazing-that-led-to-homicide/

Seriously? Is this what our “Best Of The Best” have come to?

The US needs to stop sweeping this stupidity under the rugs and come clean and take stock and clean up our Special Ops…..it seems to have become nothing more than spoiled brats having a “a little fun” and then not held responsible for the murder they committed.

Apparently the SEALs and Raiders do not think that they are held to the same as the rest of the military.

This is NOT the first story of the SEALs acting like prima donas….

https://lobotero.com/2014/11/10/squabbling-seals/

https://lobotero.com/2019/01/10/special-ops-under-scrutiny/ (Not to worry this has been settled where low ranking officers take the heat while the upper sits on their blotted asses and allows the Special Ops to deteriorate)…..

Time for some serious house cleaning and re-adjustment of the parameters of the Special Ops.

Plus the MSM tries to portray these people as some how “super human”…and will do what it takes to protect their reputations at all costs.

Death in Mali–Is Justice Served?

About 2 years ago in the West African nation of Mali and our US Special Ops troopers, who are the best in the world, had a situation where an Army Green Beret was killed by 2 Navy Seals and a couple of Marine Raiders…..I wrote extensively about this event….most of what I wrote is referenced in this post……https://lobotero.com/2018/12/11/death-in-mali-update/

A Navy SEAL pleaded guilty Thursday in the hazing death of a Green Beret soldier, detailing the late-night plot to break into 34-year-old Army Staff Sgt. Logan Melgar’s room with a sledgehammer, put him in a chokehold and restrain him with duct tape during a deployment in Africa.

In a pretrial agreement, Chief Special Warfare Operator Adam Matthews pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit assault, unlawful entry, obstruction of justice and violating a general order by committing hazing. As part of the plea deal, prosecutors agreed to drop murder and involuntary manslaughter charges against him.

Following the agreement, a military judge sentenced Matthews to one year in military prison.

Matthews said that he, along with another member of the Navy’s SEAL Team 6 and two elite Marine Raiders, carried out the “juvenile” attack on June 4, 2017, in Bamako, Mali’s capital.

The service members are also accused of lying to Navy commanders and investigators about what happened.

Ahead of Thursday’s hearing, Matthews’ attorney, Grover Baxley, said his client “looks forward to detailing what happened that night in Mali almost 2 years ago and hopes that his explanation of events will assist the Melgar family in finding some semblance of closure.”

He added that Melgar’s death was “an unforeseen accident that has dramatically impacted the lives of everyone involved. SOC Matthews is eager to assist with the Navy’s resolution of this case and then attempting to move on with his life.”

In an earlier statement to Military Times, Matthews’ attorney said he didn’t believe his client nor the three other men accused meant to kill Melgar.

“I don’t believe any of these four men did. This was an avoidable tragedy, and SSgt Maxwell is deeply remorseful for his role in it,” Maxwell’s other attorney, Brian Bouffard, wrote in an email.

Even though Melgar died in June 2017, the Pentagon did not release any information regarding his death until news outlets broke the story several months later.

According to The Washington Post, the tragedy occurred after a long night of drinking and partying. Two SEALs and two Marine Raiders smashed their way into Melgar’s room with a sledgehammer because they purportedly wanted to teach him a lesson for leaving them behind in traffic on the way to a party at the French Embassy

One of the SEALs, Petty Officer 1st Class Anthony E. DeDolph, jumped on Melgar and put him in a chokehold while Matthews grabbed Melgar’s legs. The two Marines then duct-taped his legs together. When they moved on to Melgar’s wrists, they realized he had stopped breathing.

The case, including allegations of a coverup, shed light on the culture of heavy drinking and womanizing in a West African city where there are alcohol restrictions and warnings about terrorist threats.

(Fox News)

I am glad that this may be finally over for the family of SSgt Melgar……but the accused are full of shit!

They are glad it is over? After lying constantly and then given a lighter sentence I guess they are glad it is over. And to fake concern for the family of SSgt Melgar is disingenuous…

Personally, I think they got off light and they should be thankful…there is NO excuse for special ops killing each other there are enough “bad guys” to do it for them.

Think about this…if I get drunk and drive and kill someone I am guilty of vehicular homicide …….and yet these people are not guilty of any thing other than a wrist slapping offense.

The Pentagon is anxious to close this chapter and move on…..but should it?

The Pentagon needs to get a handle on the discipline problem within the Special Ops…..I thought the Special Ops troops were the best of the best…..yet they act no better than some sophomoric frat boys.

Special Ops Under Scrutiny

I know that the public thinks that our special ops can do no wrong….after all they did kill Osama, right? I wish this was true and in the last couple of years scandal has become synonymous with the command.

In the last year or so SOCOM has had its scandals…..from murder to ambush deaths to loose lips……in Africa alone their ops have gone side ways on several occasion…after all this the Pentagon has ordered a review of SOCOM because of all the scandals that just keep mounding up……I wrote about their problems as they became evident……https://lobotero.com/2018/10/26/socom-you-have-a-problem/

Thanx to all the scandal…..The entire special ops community is under scrutiny…….

This fall has been rough for headlines involving special operations troops.

Two Navy SEALs and two Marine Raiders face murder charges in the death of a Green Beret last year in Mali. Meanwhile, a Navy SEAL is under investigation for murdering an Iraqi detainee, and a dozen of his colleagues could be called as witnesses.

Now, after U.S. Special Operations Command has been entrenched in the Global War on Terror for going on two decades, Congress is calling on a Defense Department review of the entire organization, from its operational load to ― notably ― the state of its professionalism and ethics programs.

The most recent National Defense Authorization Act points to “growing congressional concern with misconduct, ethics, and professionalism,” according to a Congressional Research Service report published in late October.

“That review is ongoing right now,” a defense official told Army Times

https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-army/2018/12/05/the-pentagon-is-reviewing-the-special-operations-community-after-a-series-of-high-profile-scandals/

I have written that it is shameful to know that the “best of the best” after the media build-up is not necessarily the “best”. None seem to be immune….the Green Berets, SEALs, Raiders, et al……..

I will be watching and reporting as often as I can on this situation and we hope that this can be rectified without the loss of face.

Special Ops cannot walk on water and they should not be immune to scrutiny….maybe with better oversight these types of scandals can be avoided.

Turn The Page!

Closing Thought–05Dec18

Before the SEALs….before Delta Force….before Special Forces…there was the 1st Special Service Force (1st SSF)……they were a short lived unit made up of troops from the US and Canada…..they proved their worth in the battle for Italy and went on to fight in Southern France during World War Two…..

I introduced my readers to this group back in 2016……https://lobotero.com/2016/11/11/the-black-devils/

04 December is the 75th anniversary of their attack on the Nazi stronghold of Monte La Difensa……

Today’s Army Special Forces groups trace their official lineage from the First Special Service Force (FSSF), an elite American-Canadian commando unit during World War II. Activated, July 20, 1942 at Fort William Henry Harrison, near Helena, Montana, the 3,000-man FSSF contained a mix of American and Canadian volunteers.(1) Trained and equipped for special operations in mountain terrain, the force first saw combat in the mountains of Italy 75 years ago this week.(2)
U.S. Army Lieutenant General Mark W. Clark’s Fifth Army had been pressing northward against the German defenses since landing at Salerno, September 9, 1943, with the goal of capturing Rome. Fifth Army’s approach was blocked by a series of German defensive belts known as the Winter Line. Tough enemy resistance, coupled with rugged terrain, inclement weather, and an inadequate number of Allied troops, slowed the Fifth Army’s progress to a crawl.
The steep slopes of Monte La Difensa presented a formidable obstacle to the Allied advance. In November 1943, the 7th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division tried and failed to seize control of the mountain, despite a valiant ten-day effort. Other 3rd Division units attacked north of La Difensa, but also could not penetrate the stout German defenses. Limited successes along the front were offset by the high casualty rate. November 13, Lt. Gen. Clark called off further offensive operations for the remainder of the month.

https://www.dvidshub.net/news/302175/75th-anniversary-first-special-service-force-monte-la-difensa

I bring this up to help their legacy stay in the minds of Americans….for as it is theirs as well as my unit in Vietnam, the LRRPs, are ate up by the Hollywood story of today’s special ops units.

These men should be remembered for their courage and sacrifice not because they were some part of a greater whole……as the saying goes…”All gave some and some gave all”……

Death In Mali–Continued

I have been covering the death of a Green Beret in Mali at the hands of some Navy SEALS…….this death occurred last year about this time….it has been reported that the SEALs will go to courts martial and now word has come out that the Marine Raiders were more involved than they first admitted……

The account of the death took many different paths and I tried to keep my readers up on the story…..https://lobotero.com/2018/11/13/more-on-the-death-in-mali/

Two Marine Raiders facing murder charges in the death of an Army Green Beret played a much larger role in the death than had been previously revealed through media reports, according to official documents.

Military Times has verified the names of the two Marine Raiders facing felony murder and related charges in connection with the strangulation death of Army Special Forces Staff Sgt. Logan Melgar at his residence in Bamako, Mali, on June 4, 2017.

Gunnery Sgt. Mario Madera-Rodriguez and Staff Sgt. Kevin Maxwell face an Article 32 hearing on Dec. 10 along with Navy SEALs Chief Petty Officer Adam Matthews and Petty Officer Anthony DeDolph.

https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-marine-corps/2018/11/20/marine-raiders-facing-murder-charges-had-deeper-involvement-in-green-beret-death-than-previously-reported/

I stated after the first report that it was shameful that Americans killing Americans when there are a wealth of others that will gladly do it.

This will not sit lightly on the scorecard of the special ops……

The murder case of SSG Logan Melgar of the 3rd Special Forces Group (3rd SFG) is another tough scenario for the SF Group’s soldiers to bear. The unit lost four of its members in a deadly ambush in Niger and then to find out that one of its finer NCOs was murdered in US Embassy housing while stationed in Mali was worse. But worst of all was the fact that SSG Melgar wasn’t murdered by terrorists but reportedly at the hands of his fellow US Special Operations warriors from the Navy SEALs and Marine Corps Raiders. That is a stain regardless of the outcome of the court-martial on all of SOCOM that won’t soon fade.

While we’re not going to argue the merits of the case, this much is clear. Melgar shared an apartment with two members of SEAL Team Six, operators identified as Petty Officer Adam Matthews and Petty Officer Anthony DeDolph. Both SEALs admitted to breaking into Melgar’s room while he was asleep. Melgar died of asphyxiation and DeDolph has admitted to putting Melgar in a chokehold. The SEALs stories have changed several times which raised red flags which triggered a further investigation.

https://specialoperations.com/33779/the-mali-green-beret-murder-case-is-a-stain-on-all-of-sof/

Time for the “rest of the story” when it comes to this Green Beret’s death……his family deserves closure.

Death Does Not Take A Holiday!

Last week we celebrated a holiday….but for some the days were not all that for giving thanks……

Once again I have the same duty to announce yet another death of an American soldier in Afghanistan……

The U.S. service member killed in Afghanistan on Saturday has been identified as a 25-year-old U.S. Army Ranger from Washington state. Military officials confirmed in a statement Sunday that Sgt. Leandro Jasso, a member of the elite 75th Ranger Regiment, was killed by gunfire in southwest Afghanistan. The exact circumstances surrounding his death remain unclear. Jasso was said to be “mortally wounded by gunfire” during an operation against al-Qaeda in a remote area where U.S. forces are not known to carry out many operations. “The loss of Sgt. Jasso is felt by his family and loved ones, by all who served with him and by all on this mission to protect our country and our allies,” said General Austin Miller, the highest-ranking U.S. officer in Afghanistan. Jasso’s death, six years after he joined the Army in 2012, marks the 10th U.S. combat fatality in the war-torn nation in 2018 alone. The commander for Jasso’s battalion gave his condolences in a statement: “Sgt. Jasso was a humble professional who placed the mission first, lived the Ranger Creed and will be deeply missed.”

(Daily Beast)

SGT Leandro Jasso – Ranger KIA in Afghanistan

I wish there was no need for someone like me to report on every death but as long as we continue to fight endless wars in numerous nations there is a need for someone to report on the evdednts that most Americans are trying to forget.

Sgt. Leandro Jasso R.I.P.

Americans Killing Americans

Closing Thought–16Nov18

Just a few days ago I read a report on a post I did about a year ago…..a story about Americans killing Americans in the West African nation of Mali….https://lobotero.com/2018/11/13/more-on-the-death-in-mali/

That post contains references to all my past posts on this situation…..

It appears that the US Navy has decided to press charges on 4 members of the special ops team operating in Mali……charges ranging from felony murder to obstruction of justice……

Four members of the US armed forces are facing a slew of charges in connection to the 2017 death of an Army Green Beret in the African nation of Mali. Among the charges leveled against Petty Officer Anthony E. DeDolph and Chief Petty Officer Adam C. Matthews, both members of SEAL Team Six, and two unnamed Marine Raiders are felony murder, conspiracy, obstruction of justice, burglary, hazing, and involuntary manslaughter, the Daily Beast reports. Officials say the SEALs and Marines broke into the room of Army Staff Sgt. Logan Melgar at embassy housing in Bamako in June 2017, restrained him with duct tape, and put him in a chokehold, strangling him while “perpetuating a burglary,” NBC reports. The SEALs reportedly tried to resuscitate the 34-year-old Melgar and also tried to open an air wave by opening a hole in his throat.

According to the Daily Beast, which has reported extensively on the case, there was an “ongoing disagreement,” between Melgar, who was part of a six-person intelligence team, and the SEALs “over the SEAL’s professionalism.” Sources say the SEALs would bring prostitutes to the house and were stealing cash meant to recruit local informants. “The place ran like a frat house,” a source told the site. The SEALs and Marines hatched the plot to haze Melgar on June 4, 2017, while the latter was at an embassy party, and attacked him around 5am. They ultimately took Melgar to a medical facility, where he was declared dead. Later, the four engaged in a cover up, per the Military Times, including sharing information about what they told investigators, withholding information from investigators, and getting rid of alcohol kept in the room.

Maybe now the family of the Green Beret will get the answers they deserve…….

There is more bad news for the SEALs……in the past few months reports keep coming out that there is a discipline problem in the organization…..but first my post from a few months ago….

https://lobotero.com/2018/10/26/socom-you-have-a-problem/

https://lobotero.com/2018/10/19/its-about-the-discipline/

It seems that a bunch of SEALs have gotten caught up in a war crimes investigation……

Military officials are prepared to call nearly a dozen past and present Navy SEALs to testify in the case of one elite Navy commando accused of fatally stabbing an Islamic State detainee in Iraq last year, according to documents obtained by Navy Times.

The records related to the Naval Criminal Investigation Service’s probe offer new insight into the probe that will be aired publicly when the case against Special Operations Chief Edward “Eddie” Gallagher goes to an Article 32 hearing Wednesday morning in San Diego.

The documents suggest that military officials have obtained cellphone text conversations showing Gallagher allegedly sought to cover up the fatal stabbing. The records also show that a different special operator may be acting like a mole for federal investigators by attempting to talk to another petty officer who has lawyered up and invoked his right to silence.

https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-navy/2018/11/14/more-than-a-dozen-navy-seals-may-get-caught-up-in-war-crimes-investigation/

This is what you get when individuals believe the hype of invincibility…..to believe that any action is acceptable when you are the “best of the best”…..

Secrets The Dead Reveal

I once heard a major say that the “dead reveal their secrets”….he was referring to the Viet Cong that been killed and the intel that was garnered off their bodies…..but the same could be said for many other dead….like those Americans killed around the world or more specific in Africa…..

Because of American dead we learned that we have troops operating in countries like Niger and Mali to mention only a few……in Niger we had 4 Americans killed in an ambush and in Mali we had friendly killing friendly…..

More On The Death In Mali

A year ago I wrote a post on the mysterious death of a green Beret at the hands of SEALs…..I was appalled at the killing of Americans by Americans….we have enough enemies in the world we do not need to kill each other……then a report came out in a coupe of South American newspaper about the investigation into this death……I wrote…..https://lobotero.com/2018/11/07/suspicious-death-in-mali/

Four days after I read the report an American publication picked up the story…the Army Times……

A Navy admiral will now determine whether two SEALs will face charges in the strangling death of an Army Special Forces staff sergeant last year in Mali.

More than a year after the incident, the Navy’s criminal investigation into the death of Army Staff Sgt. Logan Melgar, 34, has concluded and been turned over to Rear Adm. Charles Rock, commander of Navy Region Mid-Atlantic in Norfolk, Virginia, as reported by the U.S. Naval Institute.

Rock was appointed by Secretary of the Navy Richard Spencer to oversee the case, according to USNI.

Capt. Greg Hicks, the Navy’s chief spokesman, told the New York Times that Rock would “review all relevant information pertaining to Staff Sergeant Melgar’s death and make determinations regarding administrative or disciplinary actions as appropriate.”

https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2018/11/07/navy-completes-investigation-into-death-of-green-beret-in-mali-heres-what-happens-next/

Basically the same story as the one I read four days earlier……I wish I had more to write about but I wanted to make sure that my readers were aware that an American publication had picked up the story…..

Hopefully this family will get the answers and the satisfaction they deserve…..

Suspicious Death In Mali

I have a loyal reader from Brazil and I was searching the new for some story on the new government that is taking control….and I was diverted by an American story that did not make our news.

Over a year ago I wrote a couple of posts about the death of US Army Green Beret at the hands of a couple SEALs in deployment in the West African country of Mali……https://lobotero.com/2017/11/20/death-of-a-green-beret/ (please read the previous posts for more detail)

There has been very little about this investigation into the death of the Green Beret…..and thanx to the midterms it would go unnoticed but fortunately I found the story while reading a Brazilian newspaper……

Seventeen months after a Green Beret died in unusual circumstances in Mali, the U.S. Department of Defense is no closer to disclosing the circumstances of his death or whether charges should be laid against any individual or individuals.

Army Staff Sgt. Logan Melgar was killed at a house he shared with two U.S. Navy SEALS and two Marine Raiders, who were part of the same small joint special operations unit attached to the U.S. Embassy in Bamako, the Mali capital.

oth the SEALs, Petty Officer Antony DeDolph and Chief Petty Officer Adam Cranston Matthews gave investigators conflicting stories as to what had happened leading up to the time of Melgar’s death, the circumstances and the cause. Their stories also kept changing. Initially they took Melgar to a medical clinic and told staff there they had found him in the condition he was in, and that DeDolph, a martial arts expert, had tried to revive him by doing an emergency tracheotomy.

Subsequently the pair said DeDolph had been sparring with Melgar in a late night, drunken incident, he accidently choked the soldier. The problem with story is that Melgar didn’t drink. The Medical Examiner found no traces of alcohol or drugs in his body.

https://www.brazilsun.com/news/258265488/admiral-to-rule-whether-seals-to-be-charged-over-mali-death

It is a shame that all the midterm speculation was far more important than the death of an American soldier….a needless death…..

It was also reported in an Argentine newspaper as well…..but not so much here where the man lived.

IST hopes that the family gets the answers they deserve and not some PR BS to save face……

In Saner Thought

"It is the duty of every man, as far as his ability extends, to detect and expose delusion and error"..Thomas Paine

Tag: Special Ops