U.S. Army special forces soldier Ssgt. Logan Melgar was killed in Mali by two Navy SEALs after he discovered that the commandos were conducting an unauthorized operation of their own, which allegedly involved siphoning money from a fund set up to pay informants.
It was originally reported that on June 4, Melgar was found dead inside of a U.S. Embassy housing unit, located in the Malian capital city of Bamako. Although it was determined that the 34-year-old Melgar died from strangulation, U.S. officials refused to release any more information surrounding the circumstances of the soldier’s death. Officials later said that two unnamed members of SEAL Team Six were under investigation in connection with the death.
One of the suspects was later identified as Petty Officer Anthony DeDolph, according to Vox . DeDolph is reportedly a former professional mixed martial arts fighter.
At the outset of the incident, DeDolph and the other unnamed SEAL originally told investigators that they found Melgar unconscious and tried to revive him before seeking medical help. According to the Daily Beast, the men “ attempted to open an airway in Melgar’s throat.” It is unclear whether this was done by a tracheostomy , which involves cutting a hole into the windpipe, or by other means.
The men later changed their story, saying Melgar was fatally injured while engaging in a drunken wrestling confrontation with them. An autopsy later determined that Melgar was not intoxicated at the time of his death.
The SEALs are said to be suspected of strangling Staff Sergeant Logan Melgar in Mali last June https://t.co/MKuDnlicxI
— New York Magazine (@NYMag) November 13, 2017
This is where the SEALs’ story began to quickly unravel. New information obtained by the Daily Beast now points toward an intentional murder to silence Melgar after he discovered DeDolph and his fellow teammate were skimming money from a fund that was being used to pay for terrorist intelligence provided by informants. According to the Daily Beast, Melgar had previously told his wife, via email, that he “had a bad feeling” about two of the men he was assigned to work with.
Based on information from sources close to the investigation, authorities suspect that Melgar stumbled upon the two men’s off-the-books operation and was murdered when he refused to participate in the illicit activity, according to the Daily Beast.
Melgar, who was a member of the Army 3rd Special Forces Group, based at Ft. Bragg, N.C., was part of a secret joint counter terrorism operation in Mali. The U.S. is also currently conducting similar missions in neighboring Niger, where four other special forces soldiers were killed during an enemy ambush, with the death of one soldier, Sgt. La David Johnson, occurring under mysterious circumstances .
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