Green Berets stole $200k meant to fight terrorism, feds say. Team leader pleads guilty
A former member of the U.S. Special Forces faces up to 15 years in prison after he pleaded guilty Monday to stealing $200,000 meant for reconstruction efforts and fighting terrorism in Afghanistan, federal prosecutors say.
Former Sgt. 1st Class William Todd Chamberlain was the non-commissioned officer-in-charge of an elite Army Green Beret team based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, when he and four other soldiers were indicted in 2014 for taking the cash.
“All five soldiers converted stolen funds into postal money orders, which were purchased from military post offices in Afghanistan. They also sent cash to family members in the mail or carried cash back into the United States at the end of the deployment,” the U.S. attorney’s office for the Eastern District of North Carolina said in a news release.
The money was meant for rebuilding and humanitarian projects in Afghanistan, including roads, medical clinics and schools, prosecutors said. The team, part of the 3rd Special Forces Group, also stole classified funds that were supposed to help pay for counter-terrorism operations and to fight the Taliban.
“Our Office stands committed to routing out public corruption. Chamberlain and his teammates abused the unique trust bestowed upon them by the military as members of the Special Forces,” the U.S. attorney’s office said.
Chamberlain, 46, of Raleigh is the last of the five to plead guilty. The others — Deric Harper, Jeffrey Cook, Cleo Autry and Barry Walls, already pleaded guilty in the scheme. They were sentenced to three years of probation and each ordered to pay $40,000 in restitution.
Prosecutors say Chamberlain delayed a trial or a guilty plea and “filed numerous pre-trial motions, claiming, among other things, that he needed access to classified information to defend himself.”
A sentencing date for Chamberlain has not yet been set.
“Theft of U.S. government funds in a war zone is a serious crime that weakens our national objectives in Afghanistan,” John F. Sopko, special inspector general for the country’s reconstruction, said in a news release. “The message of this case is loud and clear: SIGAR and our law enforcement partners will pursue justice — no matter how long it takes.”
