FORT HOOD, TX — Fort Hood officials announced Wednesday that claims of "abusive sexual contact" made by a missing Fort Hood soldier were found to be unsubstantiated.
Sgt. Elder Fernandes reported to officials that someone had allegedly grabbed his butt.
The Criminal Investigation Division opened an investigation in May 2020 and completed its investigation recently.
According to CID authorities, the suspect of the allegations passed a polygraph. There were also no witnesses to the alleged act.
CID officials said based on the investigation, Sgt. Fernandes' accusations were found to be unsubstantiated.
NOTE: An earlier version of this story said that Fernandes was aware of the outcome of the investigation. Fort Hood clarified that Fernandes was not made aware, but they were explaining the normal operating procedure. During the press conference, a CID agent said that CID routinely briefs victims throughout investigations, and provides information on the outcomes. The spokesperson was describing the standard operating procedure for its investigations, not Fernandes's case specifically.
