9 Midshipmen Face Discipline In Drug Case: Naval Academy

ANNAPOLIS, MD — Five midshipmen face discipline for possible drug use at the U.S. Naval Academy, a spokesman says, while four more students who allegedly knew about the illicit use of cocaine, ecstasy, ketamine and mushrooms face discipline for failing to report the conduct. On Monday, Cmdr. David McKinney said in a statement that the Naval Academy's academic discipline from the Academy could mean demerits, loss of privileges, restriction or separation from the school, while military justice options include court martial.

Both the Navy and the Naval Academy have a zero tolerance policy for drug use, McKinney said. News that school officials and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service was initially confirmed in February when after a surprise drug test for all midshipmen was ordered. Reports said it was part of an allegation that drugs are being sold via the "Dark Web" at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis. At least one student was taken in for questioning, although no criminal charges have yet been filed. The digital space known as the "Dark Web" is used for nefarious activity on a decentralized, unregulated platform where drugs, stolen personal data and other illicit transactions take place.

At that time three midshipmen were accused of selling cocaine, LSD and ketamine (a sedative abused illegally as a hallucinogen) to classmates who buy the drugs using the digital currency Bitcoin, Fox News reported. Investigators were first alerted to the ring about four months ago when a student reported it to authorities.

(For more news like this, find your local Patch here. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here.)

School officials ordered a surprise drug test for all the 4,500 midshipmen at the academy Feb. 21. Normally, senior midshipmen leaders are told about drug tests the night before, but that was not the case this week. The Fox News report says the 23rd company is the focus of the investigation. Drug Enforcement Agency agents used trained drug dogs to search the rooms of the suspected students and discovered cocaine. One midshipman reportedly tried to flee but was brought in for questioning, the network says.

"The Naval Academy and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service recently initiated a command-assisted investigation in Annapolis after receiving a midshipman report of alleged recreational drug use within the Brigade," Mckinney told Fox News last month. "[T]he results of the investigation are still pending. We are continuing to work with NCIS on these reported allegations. The Navy has a zero tolerance for drug abuse and takes all allegations of misconduct very seriously."

The Capital-Gazette reports that NCIS and school officials have been looking into the accusations for about two and a half months and hope to resolve it soon. Academy officials declined to answer the newspaper's questions about the scope of the drug ring, where sales occurred or how many midshipmen might be involved.

Illegal drug use or possession means mandatory separation from the Naval Academy. In 2010 and 2011, NCIS investigate the use of synthetic marijuana by midshipmen, which led to the dismissal of at least 27 midshipmen, the newspaper reports.

PHOTO: Midshipmen cheer before the Cincinnati Bearcats play the Navy Midshipmen at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in 2017 in Annapolis, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)