This article was published as part of a content-sharing agreement between Army Times and The Fayetteville Observer.
A Fort Liberty, North Carolina senior enlisted leader is accused of using a government credit card to go to a Virginia nightclub, bringing methamphetamine into the U.S. and engaging in online activities in support of a criminal gang in Mexico.
Court dockets show that Sgt. Maj. Jorge E. Garcia, 52, of Chula Vista, California, was arraigned last month on two counts of wrongful use/possession of a controlled substance; one count of making a false official statement; six counts of failure to obey an order and one count of fraudulent use of a debit or credit card.
Garcia’s charges were first reported by military.com. He has been in the Army since 1990 and arrived at Fort Liberty in August 2021.
He is a career counselor with the Special Troops Battalion, U.S. Army Reserve and U.S. Army Forces Commands, a FORSCOM spokesman said.
A charge sheet provided to The Fayetteville Observer alleges that Garcia left the country without permission four times between August 2021 and May 2023. Garcia was placed in pretrial confinement June 8.
According to the charge sheet, he is accused of:
• Importing, with an intent to distribute, 11 grams of methamphetamine in the U.S., near San Ysidro, California, on May 27, 2023.
• Charging $241.89 in unauthorized purchases on a government travel card at the Arlington, Virginia, Flirt Lounge, identified as a dance and nightclub on its Facebook page, on Oct. 13, 2021.
• Failing to obtain approval to travel outside the U.S. multiple times between August 2021 and May 2023.
• Violating Army regulations by promoting activities online on April 3-4, 2022, at, or near, Tijuana, Mexico, that supported a criminal gang “with the knowledge that such activities involve an extremist cause.”
• Making false official statements about his destination for military leave in March and June 2022, and he wasn’t present to report for duty at Fort Liberty between Sept. 25-30, 2022.
A trial for Garcia is scheduled in May.
