Petty Officer 3rd Class Peter Mims, the sailor hid aboard the USS Shiloh for seven days , was released on June 27 after spending six days in the brig at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Stars and Stripes reports.
The Shiloh crew believed Mims to have fallen overboard, after his disappearance on June 8 prompting a 50-hour search of 5,500 square miles of ocean near Okinawa by the U.S. and Japanese vessels. While planning a memorial service in his honor on June 15, Mims was discovered hiding out in one of the ship’s engine rooms.
Before being placed in the brig, Mims was examined by doctors and questioned by investigators. On June 19, Action News Jax reported that Mims was actively trying to evade fellow sailors searching for him aboard the Shiloh. He now faces court-martial proceedings.
“We do not know all the details and motivations behind this Sailor’s week-long disappearance,” Lt. Cmdr. Matt Knight of the U.S. Pacific Fleet public affairs office said in a statement “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.”
Mims was missing for more than three days but fewer than 30, meaning he could face six months’ confinement maximum, Navy Times reports. He could face charges of desertion or absence without leave charges.
The Navy’s investigation into the incident is expected to continue into the summer. Mims’ court-martial date has yet to be released.
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