BAMBERG, Germany — A 1st Infantry Division sergeant major was sentenced to a reprimand and reduction in rank to sergeant first class Thursday after being convicted of several offenses that took place between November 2003 and March 2004.
Sgt. Maj. Tony Foster, formerly the command sergeant major for 1st Battalion, 6th Field Artillery Regiment, was convicted by a panel of officers and enlisted members of wrongful appropriation, conspiracy to commit wrongful appropriation, making a false official statement, obstructing justice and two counts of adultery.
He had been charged with larceny and conspiracy to commit larceny, but the panel found him guilty of the lesser charges.
He was found innocent of a charge of housebreaking.
Most of the charges stemmed from a March 15 incident in which Foster and then-1st Sgt. Stephen Wall took carpeting, tables and a refrigerator from a building belonging to another unit on Forward Operating Base Gabe in Iraq.
Foster and Wall initially said they acquired the furniture from a section of FOB Gabe where unused furniture and equipment were stored prior to the transfer of authority.
Foster maintained in official statements that he got items from there, but Wall later changed his story and confessed to taking the items from a building belonging to another unit. He received a general letter of reprimand and was removed from his first sergeant position. He testified for the government under immunity from prosecution.
Wall said Foster and he entered the locked building by removing an air conditioner and climbing through the hole in the wall. He said the two had been at FOB Gabe for about a week and thought the building was abandoned.
Foster later told Wall to lie to investigators about where they had acquired the items, Wall said.
The charges of adultery came from relationships with two women — one from Bamberg, Germany, and the other from the Netherlands whom Foster met on the Internet — from November 2003 to January 2004.
Foster’s wife learned of the affairs and contacted both women. She later sent e-mails to Foster while he was deployed to Iraq asking about the affairs and sending copies of the e-mails to his battalion commander.
The bulk of the testimony in the case centered on the incidents that occurred in Iraq.
In closing arguments, prosecutor Capt. Matt Kemkes referred to testimony that the room Foster and Wall took the furniture from resembled a living room.
“It did not look like abandoned property,” he said. “The evidence heard from witnesses and documents all point to the guilt of the accused in this case.”
For the defense, Capt. Fred Kranz said there were too many inconsistencies in testimony and statements for the panel to be sure of Foster’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The letter of reprimand will come from the court-martial convening authority, Maj. Gen. John Batiste, the 1st ID commander, after his review is complete. The reduction in rank takes effect May 19.
