The USS Shiloh sailor whose hoax disappearance on June 8 launched a massive seven-day rescue effort will now face court-martial, according to Stars and Stripes.
Mims, whose absence prompted a 5,500 square mile manhunt in the Pacific, was initially presumed dead after a 50-hour search carried out by aircraft from the USS Ronald Reagan along with destroyers USS John S. McCain and USS McCampbell and the Japanese Navy yielded no sign of life.
Mims turned himself over to fellow sailors on June 15 after they stumbled upon him hiding in one of the ship’s engine rooms. The Shiloh crew was preparing a memorial service at the time he was found.
After medical examination and questioning, Petty Officer 3rd Class Peter Mims was placed in the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar brig since June 21, ahead of formal charges, Navy spokesman Cmdr. Clay Doss told Stars and Stripes in an email on June 26.
Doss added that more information would become available after the conclusion of an ongoing Navy investigation. However, the Action News Jax reported that Mims was actively trying to evade fellow sailors searching for him aboard the Shiloh.
“This matter remains under investigation, but early indications are that he had taken steps to avoid being found by other Sailors, who were actively attempting to locate him,” Pacific Fleet Lt. Cmdr. Matt Knight said in a statement to Action News Jax.
The charges have not yet been released, and the date of the court martial has not been made public.
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