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CG relieves cutter skipper in Persian Gulf

The commanding officer of a 110-foot patrol boat stationed in the Persian Gulf has been “temporarily relieved for cause,” the Coast Guard announced Tuesday.

Lt. Kerry D. McKeever, skipper of the cutter Monomoy, has been reassigned to the Coast Guard’s Atlantic Area command in Portsmouth, Va., while officials investigate his conduct, Atlantic Area spokesman Lt. Rob Wyman said in a statement.

The Woods Hole, Mass.-based Monomoy has been assigned a temporary commanding officer, although that officer’s identity was not immediately available. The Coast Guard did not disclose more information on the cause of McKeever’s relief.

“The Coast Guard takes the responsibility of command very seriously, and we’re following the established administrative processes to determine the most appropriate course of action from here,” said Atlantic Area commander Adm. Brian Peterman, in a statement.

The Monomoy is attached to Coalition Task Force 158, a multinational naval force that conducts maritime security operations and specifically protects the oil terminals of the Persian Gulf.