UK officials question police decision in American fighter pilot case

Captain Jacob Wulfson was accused of sexually assaulting Sarah Steele in his Cambridge flat. Cambridgeshire police initially allowed US military police to take control of the investigation, leading to Wulfson being prosecuted in a military tribunal on a US airbase in Suffolk rather than in a UK criminal court.

Internal MoD communications reveal officials believed Cambridgeshire police should not have relinquished control, citing a breach of an established agreement between the UK and the US. This decision drew criticism from Downing Street, prompting a high-level government inquiry into the transfer of investigations involving US military personnel to US authorities.

The agreement dictates that UK police typically have primary jurisdiction over crimes committed by Americans stationed in the country. MoD officials emphasized the agreement is “pretty unambiguous,” allowing US military involvement only in limited circumstances, such as offenses committed on duty or against military personnel or property.

One memo from MoD officials in Washington, dated July 8th, stated the Steele case “does not, on the surface, appear to meet the bar” for US military jurisdiction. Another email from the same period voiced concern that the decision-making process appeared inconsistent with the terms of the agreement.

A Greater Manchester police officer, in an email to MoD officials, described Cambridgeshire police’s actions as “wrongly” handing over the investigation. Cambridgeshire police are currently reviewing the case with the assistance of US Air Force lawyers, stating they remain engaged with the victim and are working to clarify jurisdictional decision-making.

US military authorities reportedly seek to prosecute their personnel within the framework of their agreement with the UK. Concerns have been raised about British victims being required to testify in US courts-martial, which may not offer the same protections as UK courts.

Wulfson, who was off-duty when the alleged assault occurred in December 2023, was convicted of strangling an intimate partner and acquitted of sexual assault at a court martial in April. He was dismissed from the US Air Force and sentenced to six months in a military jail at Lakenheath.

The ongoing inquiry, involving multiple government departments and police chiefs, is examining a series of cases where investigations have been transferred to US military police, even when the perpetrators were off-duty and the victims had no connection to the armed forces. These cases include the alleged rape of two women in Suffolk by Tyrion Davis, and an indecent exposure charge against Hannes Marschalek, whose conviction was later overturned on appeal.

Currently, over 12,000 US military personnel are stationed in the UK across at least 15 bases, with Lakenheath and Mildenhall in Suffolk being the largest.