Female officers kicked off subs in fraud probe - Navy News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Navy Times

Female officers kicked off subs in fraud probe

Three female supply officers were pulled from submarine crews within months of joining the force for allegedly committing fraud prior to checking in at their boats, a Submarine Forces spokeswoman confirmed Friday. These three were among the eight Supply Corps lieutenants that reported to the submarine force, a cadre chosen to be role models for the younger female submariners reporting straight from training to the previously all-male force.

“The alleged actions under investigation involve financial misconduct and in no way involved their performance while assigned to their current operational units,” said Submarine Forces spokeswoman Cmdr. Monica Rousselow, who explained the allegations concerned fraudulent travel claims while on temporary assigned duty.

The Naval Criminal Investigative Service investigation began in February, Rousselow said, but she declined to comment further on the nature of the allegations or who had first reported them because the investigation is still open.

The three reliefs are a setback for the ongoing integration of the undersea force. But officials characterized the disruption as “minimal” — pointing out this is not the first time supply lieutenants had been removed from subs — and that the larger effort is still on track.

“Overall, the integration of women onboard submarines continues to progress smoothly and the reassignment of the three Supply Corps officers will have a minimal impact on the integration process,” Rousselow said.

Each of the female Supply Corps lieutenants volunteered for sub duty and had been vetted. Once chosen for sub duty, they attended the 10-week-long Submarine Officer Basic Course, Rousselow said. Each lieutenant was to report to the sub along with two female submariners. In total, there were eight of these groups, one each for the Blue and Gold crews of the four subs selected: the ballistic-missile submarines Wyoming and Maine, and the guided-missile subs Georgia and Ohio.

None of the female officers had been taken to mast as of Friday, Rousselow said. She declined to release their names or the subs they had been assigned to, citing privacy concerns. They are being reassigned to Submarine Group 10 in Kings Bay, Ga., she said.