Three sailors based at Fort Gordon in Georgia are behind bars following allegations that they raped a teenager.
Cryptologic Technician (Technical) Seaman Recruit Johnathan Mychael Augustus, Cryptologic Technician (Technical) 3rd Class Michael Jamal Billington and Cryptologic Technician (Collection) Seaman Teddy Diake, all 24 years old, were taken into custody by officers from the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday and charged with rape and aggravated sodomy, according to jail records.
The jail log shows that they’re awaiting an initial bond hearing and defense attorneys have not been appointed to their cases.
The charges stem from an alleged incident involving an 18-year-old woman during a March 3 party at a Richmond County apartment complex, according to a prepared statement from authorities obtained by local media.
The victim was reportedly taken to a local hospital where she was treated for “a number of undisclosed injuries.”
“The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, with the assistance of Naval Criminal Investigative Service, is investigating allegations of a sexual assault that took place March 3 involving three service members," Lt. Cmdr. Ben Tisdale, a spokesman for Fleet Cyber Command, U.S. 10th Fleet, told Navy Times.
“We take allegations of this nature very seriously,” he said.
Augustus enlisted in 2014 and was most recently assigned to the guided-missile destroyer Ross before reporting to the Fort Gordon-based Navy Information Operations Command.
Billington joined the Navy that same year and served on board the guided-missile destroyer O’Kane prior to getting orders to Fort Gordon.
Navy Information Operations command is Diake’s first assignment following Information Warfare Training in Pensacola, Florida. He enlisted in 2017.
J.D. Simkins is the executive editor of Military Times and Defense News, and a Marine Corps veteran of the Iraq War.
