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An ex- military sergeant has been given six months in jail for sexually assaulting a young gunner who subsequently took her own life.

Warrant Officer the former sergeant, in his forties, restrained Royal Artillery Gunner the victim and tried to force a kiss on her in the summer of 2021. She was discovered deceased half a year following in her barracks at the Wiltshire base.

Webber, who was judged at the military court in Wiltshire earlier, will be transferred to a public jail and registered as sex offenders register for multiple years.

Gunner Beck's mother the mother stated: "What he [Webber] did, and how the armed forces did not safeguard our child afterwards, led to her death."

Army Statement

The armed forces stated it ignored the soldier, who was originally from Oxen Park in Cumbria, when she filed the complaint and has said sorry for its management of her complaint.

Subsequent to a formal inquiry regarding Gunner Beck's death, the defendant pleaded guilty to the offense of physical violation in the autumn.

The mother said her young woman ought to have been present with her family in the courtroom today, "to see the man she accused held accountable for what he did."

"Rather, we stand here in her absence, facing perpetual grief that no family should ever have to face," she continued.

"She followed the rules, but the individuals in charge didn't follow theirs. Those failures broke our young woman utterly."

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Court Proceedings

The legal tribunal was advised that the violation occurred during an military training at the exercise site, near Emsworth in Hampshire, in mid-2021.

The accused, a Sergeant Major at the period, made a sexual advance towards the servicewoman subsequent to an social gathering while on deployment for a training exercise.

The victim testified Webber said he had been "waiting for a moment for them to be in private" before taking hold of her, holding her against her will, and attempting to force intimacy.

She made official allegations against the sergeant following the violation, notwithstanding efforts by superiors to persuade her not to.

An official inquiry into her passing found the military's management of the report played "a significant contributing factor in her suicide."

Parent's Account

In a statement read out to the judicial body during proceedings, Ms McCready, expressed: "Our daughter had just turned 19 and will forever remain a youth full of vitality and joy."

"She believed people to protect her and after what he did, the trust was shattered. She was deeply distressed and terrified of the accused."

"I saw the transformation personally. She felt helpless and deceived. That violation shattered her trust in the set-up that was supposed to safeguard her."

Judge's Statement

While delivering judgment, The presiding judge the judge said: "We need to assess whether it can be dealt with in a different manner. We do not believe it can."

"We have determined the gravity of the crime means it can only be dealt with by prison time."

He told the convicted individual: "She had the strength and intelligence to tell you to stop and directed you to leave the area, but you persisted to the degree she felt she wouldn't be safe from you even when she went back to her personal quarters."

He stated further: "The following day, she disclosed the assault to her loved ones, her friends and her commanding officers."

"Following the report, the unit chose to address your behavior with light disciplinary measures."

"You were subject to inquiry and you admitted your actions had been inappropriate. You wrote a apology note."

"Your military service advanced unimpeded and you were eventually elevated to higher rank."

Additional Context

At the inquest into Gunner Beck's death, the official examiner said military leadership influenced her to drop the allegations, and just informed it to a military leadership "when the cat was already out of the bag."

At the period, Webber was given a "minor administrative action interview" with no further consequences.

The inquiry was further advised that mere weeks after the assault the servicewoman had further been subjected to "persistent mistreatment" by a separate individual.

Another soldier, her line manager, directed toward her over four thousand six hundred digital communications declaring attachments for her, accompanied by a multi-page "love story" describing his "personal thoughts."

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Institutional Response

The military leadership stated it offered its "sincerest condolences" to the soldier and her family.

"We will always be sincerely regretful for the shortcomings that were identified at the official inquiry in early this year."

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