US soldiers punished over Colombia prostitution scandal
US: Ten US military personnel involved in the prostitution
scandal that overshadowed President Barack Obama's trip to a regional
summit in April in Colombia have been punished but not dismissed.
Seven Army soldiers and two Marines "received non-judicial
punishments," military spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel D.L. Wright said
Wednesday, adding that a member of the Air Force had "received a lesser
punishment, a reprimand." The role of two US Navy personnel implicated
in the scandal was still under investigation.
The exact penance faced by the soldiers remains undisclosed but
non-judicial punishments can include anything from confinement to
quarters, to loss of pay or even demotion.
Nine Secret Service agents, part of Obama's security detail who went
to the Colombian city of Cartagena in advance of the Summit of the
Americas, have already been fired, resigned or retired because of the
scandal. AFP |