Three US Marines have been charged with sexual assault in a case involving a Tulane University student and her friend in New Orleans, according to court documents from the Parish of Orleans in Louisiana.
Lance Corporal Alexander Davenport, 20, was charged with two counts of first-degree rape; Lance Corporal Jared Anderson, 18, was charged with one count of first-degree rape; and Private First Class Antonio Landrum, 18, was charged with one count of third-degree rape.
According to police affidavits, the two women told police they went to a New Orleans bar on April 14, became intoxicated and left the bar April 15 with a man later identified as Landrum.
Based on surveillance footage from the bar, investigators said one victim appeared “moderately intoxicated/impaired” and the second woman looked to be “highly intoxicated/impaired.” The three went to the residence of one of the women, police said.
It’s unclear exactly what happened at the residence, based on police documents and a university statement.
Tulane issued a statement saying the women met two individuals — not one man — at an uptown establishment and later went to the student’s residence. A short time later a group of males “arrived and engaged in unwanted acts with the student and her guest. The subjects departed some time later,” the Tulane statement said.
In the police affidavit for the Landrum arrest warrant, the woman who lived at the residence said Landrum forced himself on her and her friend. But the affidavits for Davenport and Anderson say “Male one (Landrum) engaged in sexual acts with both victims, which was (sic) allegedly consensual.”
The woman said Landrum also invited some friends to her residence. According to police affidavits, the woman said she later had consensual sex with one of those men and non-consensual sex with one of them.
The second woman said she, her friend and Landrum had consensual sex but she began to black out, documents said. She said she vaguely remembered men coming into the bedroom and forcibly having sex with her, the documents said.
Landrum and Anderson told police they had sex with both women, documents said. Davenport didn’t make a statement to officers. Landrum said he “called his friends to pick him up from the location, yet they entered the residence,” the document said.
CNN has been unable to reach the Marines’ attorneys for comment.
Davenport is being held on $100,000 bond, Anderson on $50,000 bond and Landrum on $25,000 bond, according to a court docket.
Chief Warrant Officer Georgi Hernandez-McCloud of the Marine Forces Reserve issued this statement:
“The Marine Corps is aware of the alleged incident that may have involved Marines stationed here. We cannot comment on specific details due to the ongoing investigation by the Marine Corps Police Department and New Orleans Police Department. We take all allegations of this nature seriously and we are fully cooperating with authorities.”
CNN affiliate WDSU reported the three men were stationed at the Belle Chasse Naval Station.
A fourth suspect, identified as Matthew Farrell, 22, is being sought on charges of aggravated rape, said New Orleans police Senior Public Information Officer Gary Scheets.
In another statement, Tulane said:
“Tulane University is doing everything it can to assist the New Orleans Police Department in this ongoing investigation. Tulane has offered the survivors of this terrible crime victim support services as they recover. Incidents like this underscore the dangers of sexual assault that are so pervasive throughout our society. Tulane is committed to ensuring the safety of our students both on and off-campus by its continued vigilance and university-wide efforts to end sexual violence.”
