Staff Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton’s funeral was held Saturday, just 20 days after he died during a military operation in Iraq. But one photograph of his young daughter looking at an image of her father holding her captures something the ceremonies and headlines cannot. HOPE MILLS, N.C. — Two days ago, the family of Staff…
Army prosecutors said WO1 Dawson J. Van Manen bound his wife with duct tape and recorded himself raping her, then concealed his identity on Bumble before attacking another woman. Investigators believe there may be additional victims. Before he posed as “2nd Lt. David Johnson” on Bumble, WO1 Dawson J. Van Manen had already threatened to…
What began with a 911 call from behind a locked bathroom door would eventually place a Fort Stewart intelligence officer before a military court, exposing a domestic-violence case documented across Chatham County and Army records. First Lt. Benjamin S. Wasco was a Norwich University graduate, former college athlete and competitive endurance runner serving with the…
Kurdish officials promoted the projects as carrying $110 billion in potential value. What they did not publicly disclose was how much would become corporate profit, how much would reach regional or federal governments, and how much would ultimately benefit the Iraqi people who legally own the resources. WASHINGTON, D.C. — Iraq’s oil and gas belong…
FORT LEAVENWORTH, Kan. — Mason Wollersheim’s fall from Special Forces staff sergeant to military prisoner was already dramatic. Then he tried to climb his way out. A photograph published on social media in May 2025 appeared to show Wollersheim folded over the top of a chain-link fence at Fort Leavenworth, his body caught among coils…
A self-described Army spouse has built part of her online adult brand around Army uniform pieces, apparent sergeant insignia, promotion terminology and references to military communities in the National Capital Region. The material reviewed by The Salty Soldier includes sexualized use of an Army-style service uniform shirt displaying apparent NCO rank, camouflage uniform items and…
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — The Fayetteville Police Department has confirmed it is actively investigating allegations that a man publicly identified by the alleged victim as a Fort Bragg Soldier followed her through a Dollar Tree while engaging in lewd sexual conduct. The confirmation comes more than two weeks after The Salty Soldier first sought comment from…
August 2026 – Update: SSG Satvik Jarugula was fully acquitted at his court-martial, according to an updated Army court docket. Jarugula, who pleaded not guilty and chose to have his case heard by a panel of enlisted service members, had faced seven domestic-violence allegations under Article 128b of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The…
Angel Rampersad was previously listed as missing after the strike that killed 1st Lt. Tyler Feehan and Pvt. Isabella Gonzales. A fourth Soldier, Sgt. Michael Swinton, was killed days later in Iraq. The Department of War has identified Sgt. Angel S. Rampersad, 28, of Ozone Park, New York, as the Soldier believed to have been…
A Fort Benning drill sergeant assigned to help train the Army’s newest infantry Soldiers repeatedly violated a military protective order after an alleged domestic violence incident, according to court-martial records obtained by The Salty Soldier. Staff Sgt. Bradley A. Dorton, assigned to B Company, 2nd Battalion, 29th Infantry Regiment, 197th Infantry Brigade, pleaded guilty on…
