A Marine stationed at Camp Pendleton in Southern California, who was accused of having sex with a missing 14-year-old girl found in his barracks room last summer, no longer faces sex crimes charges, military officials confirmed this week.
Pfc. Avery Rosario, under an agreement with his defense attorney, pleaded guilty to breach of restriction for leaving the base without permission. He was sentenced to time served and agreed to be administratively separated from the Marine Corps without a dishonorable discharge.
Rosario had initially faced charges of sexual assault after the missing girl was discovered in his room on June 28. His attorney maintained that Rosario believed the girl was an adult. The girl was safely returned to her family.
The decision to dismiss the sexual assault allegations against Rosario came after consultation with the girl and her family through the girl’s attorney, a military spokesperson revealed.
According to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, the teen had been reported as a runaway by her grandmother on June 13, four days after she went missing. The grandmother mentioned that the teen had run away before but usually returned promptly.
Capt. Katherine Malcolm, Rosario's attorney, informed the court that her client had met the teen on the Tinder dating app and genuinely believed she was 21 years old. Rosario's friends also corroborated that they thought the girl was in her early 20s.
