US airman's kill count used in court, says victim

A university academic who was strangled by a US airman in the UK said his "kill count" in combat was used in mitigation at his military court martial hearing.

Dr Sarah Steele told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme she had been the victim of "a character assassination" when she was cross-examined during the proceedings at RAF Lakenheath in April.

Capt Jacob Wulfson, who was based at the US Air Force (USAF) airfield in Suffolk, was convicted of strangulation, dismissed from the military and given six months' detention, but was cleared of sexual assault by the all-male panel at the USAF military hearing.

Downing Street said it was "very concerning" it had not been heard in an English criminal court.

The USAF said it "holds all personnel to the highest standards of conduct".

Steele, who works at the University of Cambridge, said: "They were raising in his mitigation how many people he'd killed, supposedly to get him a lower sentence for committing a serious violent crime against me."

She met Wulfson via a dating app, and as first reported by the Guardian, they arranged in December 2023 to meet for the first time at his flat in Cambridge.

He was an F-35 pilot from the 495th Fighter Squadron.

The researcher described leaving the next day feeling that something untoward had happened.

Steele waived her right to anonymity when speaking to the newspaper and the BBC.

The USAF arrested Wulfson and Cambridgeshire Police said Steele had confirmed to its officers she had wished for the Americans to maintain the investigation.

"The constabulary's approach was therefore guided by a victim-led consideration," a force spokesperson said.

A USAF spokesman also said it "negotiated jurisdiction" with the local police and said its own court martial legislation was governed by NATO legislation signed in 1951.

But Steele said she felt "railroaded" by the USAF and that the decision to hand over jurisdiction was done without her "informed consent".

According to her: "One thing that was very unknown to me was what the American court martial system entailed.

"What I want is for women in the future to be able to make informed decisions about what's best for them in these experiences of trauma."

Steele said the court martial, in front of a panel of exclusively male military officers, was a harrowing experience.

"People are attacking you with assertions that are trying to undermine [you], say that you're lying, say that you're a problem, say that you're all manner of evil things and that you're creating this," she told the BBC.

"You've got to wade through that staring in the face of the accused".

According to the court martial docket, the offence Wulfson was convicted of came under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, specifically "aggravated assault on family member or partner".

He was acquitted of further offences, which had included sexual assault and "aggravated sexual contact".

Justice Minister Jake Richards described the case as "really serious" and said there were "issues" around the military courts system.

He told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: "I'm going to take it away back to the Ministry of Justice and make sure that we are looking into the details of this later."

The USAF spokesman added: "We remain dedicated to working transparently with our British partners to ensure the fair administration of justice."

The Prime Minister's official spokesman questioned why the case never reached the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which decides if cases should be sent to the English court system.

The Downing Street spokesman said: "This is clearly a deeply distressing case; our thoughts are with the victim.

"She's shown incredible bravery not only in her initial report to police, but also in coming forward to speak to the media to help get justice for others."

He said the government was "going to look really carefully at what's happened here, and we must stress that we're still establishing the facts".

"This is very concerning that a case like this never reached the CPS, but was investigated by US airbase police and heard in front of an all-male panel of air force officers," he said.

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