ALAMEDA — An Alameda based Coast Guard seaman has been charged with murder and other crimes in the January beating death of a shipmate in Alaska, officials said Friday.
Seaman Ethan W. Tucker, 19, who was arrested at the Alameda Coast Guard base on Wednesday, is accused in the Jan. 26 death of Seaman Ethan Kelch, also 19, in Dutch Harbor Alaska. Both men were assigned to the Kodiak based cutter Douglas Munro and had been shipmates 11 months, the Coast Guard said..
Besides murder, Tucker is also charged under the Uniform Code of Military Justice with involuntary manslaughter, aggravated assault, maiming, obstructing justice, false official statement, and failure to obey order or regulation for allegedly wrongfully consuming alcohol Jan. 26 while under the age of 21. He is being held at the Naval Consolidated Brig Miramar in San Diego pending court martial proceedings.
According to a Coast Guard charging sheet, Kelch suffered fatal blunt force trauma after he was punched in the head Jan. 26 and then left in the water. He was found the next day.
In a statement to Coast Guard investigators, included on the charging sheet, Tucker said he did not strike Kelch but had injured his hand punching a steel bulkhead after learning of his death.
A motive for the attack was not included in the charging sheet.
As the investigation continued, Tucker was reassigned in June to the Alameda base, where he was subsequently arrested.
The Coast Guard said in a statement it had a “steadfast desire to gather all the facts and seek justice” for Kelch’s family.
“Since our shipmate’s untimely passing, we have been in contact with his family to provide as much support as possible throughout this tragic and difficult time,” the statement said.
The next step in the case is an Article 32 hearing, the military equivalent of a grand jury hearing, which will take place in the next two to four months, and will determine whether there should be a court martial. A court martial would take place in either Alameda or San Diego, a a Coast Guard spokesman said.
If Tucker is found guilty, the charges carry a maximum penalty of life imprisonment, dishonorable discharge and total forfeiture of pay and allowances.
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