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A former service sergeant has been given half a year in jail for sexually assaulting a young gunner who later took her own life.

Sergeant Major the former sergeant, 43, restrained service member the young woman and sought to kiss her in the summer of 2021. She was found dead several months after in her quarters at Larkhill, Wiltshire.

Webber, who was judged at the military court in Wiltshire previously, will be sent to a correctional facility and listed on offender database for a seven-year period.

The victim's mother Leighann Mcready remarked: "What he [Webber] did, and how the Army failed to protect our child afterwards, cost Jaysley her life."

Military Response

The military leadership said it ignored the soldier, who was hailing from Oxen Park in Cumbria, when she reported the assault and has apologised for its response to her complaint.

Subsequent to an investigation of the tragic death, Webber confessed to one count of physical violation in last fall.

The grieving parent commented her young woman could have been alongside her relatives in legal proceedings now, "to observe the individual she reported held accountable for what he did."

"Rather, we are present missing her, facing perpetual grief that no family should ever experience," she continued.

"She complied with procedures, but those responsible neglected their responsibilities. Those failures destroyed our daughter completely."

PA

Judicial Process

The judicial body was advised that the violation occurred during an field exercise at the exercise site, near the Hampshire area, in mid-2021.

The accused, a ranking soldier at the time, made a sexual advance towards Gunner Beck subsequent to an alcohol consumption while on duty for a military exercise.

The victim claimed the accused said he had been "anticipating an opportunity for them to be by themselves" before taking hold of her, holding her against her will, and trying to kiss her.

She reported the incident against the accused subsequent to the violation, regardless of pressure by superiors to convince her against reporting.

A formal investigation into her passing found the armed forces' response of the report played "more than a minimal contributing factor in her suicide."

Family Statement

In a account shared to the judicial body earlier, the mother, said: "Our daughter had only become nineteen and will always be a youth full of vitality and joy."

"She believed individuals to protect her and post-incident, the trust was gone. She was very upset and scared of the accused."

"I observed the transformation personally. She felt vulnerable and abandoned. That violation broke her trust in the structure that was supposed to protect her."

Sentencing Remarks

When announcing the verdict, The judicial officer Alan Large said: "We must evaluate whether it can be dealt with in another way. We do not consider it can."

"We conclude the gravity of the violation means it can only be resolved by prison time."

He told Webber: "The victim had the courage and good sense to tell you to stop and directed you to retire for the night, but you persisted to the point she felt she wouldn't be safe from you despite the fact she returned to her personal quarters."

He continued: "The next morning, she reported the incident to her loved ones, her companions and her chain of command."

"Subsequent to the allegations, the unit opted to handle the situation with minor administrative action."

"You underwent questioning and you acknowledged your conduct had been improper. You composed a written apology."

"Your professional path advanced completely unaffected and you were in due course promoted to senior position."

Further Details

At the inquest into the soldier's suicide, the investigating officer said military leadership pressured her to cease proceedings, and just informed it to a military leadership "once details became known."

At the moment, the sergeant was given a "light disciplinary meeting" with no additional penalties.

The inquest was additionally informed that mere weeks after the incident Gunner Beck had also been exposed to "continuous bullying" by another soldier.

A separate service member, her line manager, sent her numerous SMS communications confessing his feelings for her, accompanied by a 15-page "personal account" detailing his "imagined scenarios."

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Organizational Reaction

The Army stated it provided its "heartfelt apologies" to Gunner Beck and her relatives.

"We will always be profoundly sorry for the deficiencies that were discovered at the formal investigation in February."

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