Slain Sailor Shot, Also May Have Had Burns

CAMP PENDLETON — The 29-year-old gay sailor found dead Tuesday at Camp Pendleton was shot and possibly burned, but Navy officials said yesterday that they have no sign of the killing being spurred by the victim's sexual orientation.
“There is no evidence or information that suggests this is a hate crime” against Seaman August Provost of Houston, said Capt. Matt Brown, director of public affairs for Navy Region Southwest.
He also said the military can't yet confirm whether Provost was harassed in the days leading up to his death. Brown spoke during a news conference yesterday afternoon at the Broadway Pier in downtown San Diego.
Gay activists — from the nation's largest gay-rights organization to Nicole Murray-Ramirez, chairman of the San Diego Human Relations Commission — have urged the military to conduct a full and transparent investigation. So have two San Diego members of Congress, Reps. Bob Filner and Susan Davis.
Murray-Ramirez said he still has concerns about a possible hate crime.
“We all don't have the facts,” he said. “We're going to wait until the full investigation is done, and I'm sure that the members of Congress are wanting that, too.”
Murray-Ramirez said questions remain over the motive and whether Provost's body had been burned. But he added that the military “seems to be responding to our concerns.”
The Naval Criminal Investigative Service has released the first person it held in connection with Provost's death, which is being investigated as a potential homicide.
The NCIS has taken another “person of interest” into custody. Authorities believe that individual is linked to the slaying based on physical evidence and statements he gave to investigators, Brown said.
The man also is a sailor, but it's unclear whether he served with Provost in the same unit. Brown said their relationship would have been peripheral at best.
The Navy still lacks a clear motive for the slaying, and no charges have been filed, Brown said.
He expects it to take four to five weeks to complete toxicology tests but said a cause of death could be announced sooner.
Sonja Hanson, spokeswoman for Naval Medical Center San Diego, confirmed that the sailor's remains are at the hospital.
Provost began his four-hour watch as a sentry at 11:30 p.m. Monday. The person relieving Provost found him at the guard post, which is the main entrance for vehicles in Assault Craft Unit 5 on the western edge of Camp Pendleton.
Brown wouldn't say how many times Provost was shot, or with what type of weapon. He confirmed that someone tried to light a fire at the post, but he wouldn't comment on whether Provost was bound, mutilated or injured in other ways.
Some gay-rights advocates have said sources close to the investigation have told them that Provost was disfigured and burned.
Capt. Ed Harrington, the commander of Provost's unit, spoke with the Provost family three times Thursday, Brown said.
“This is a very hard time,” Brown said. “We've lost a shipmate; we've lost a family member.”
Provost's relatives couldn't be reached yesterday. A day earlier, Akalia Provost of Houston had said her brother recently complained to family members about a person who was harassing him, so they advised him to tell his supervisor.
“He's the type that if someone comes at him, he walks away. He never stands and argues,” Akalia Houston said. “He didn't deserve anything but a good life.”
Provost was assigned to Assault Craft Unit 5. He had completed three years of college before joining the Navy in March 2008 to help finance his education, and was studying to become an architectural engineer.
from The San Diego Union-Tribune