Marine Nude Photo-Sharing Scandal Extends Beyond Single Facebook Group: Report

A new Facebook group has reportedly popped up where Marines are continuing to share nude photos of servicewomen despite the exposure of a 30,000-member group that caused a massive controversy and an investigation by the Navy's criminal investigative service when it was revealed that the page was allegedly being used to share nude photos of servicewomen without their consent.

The existence of the new group was first reported by freelance reporter and Marine veteran James LaPorta and later independently confirmed by the military news website Task & Purpose. A separate report in Business Insider says the photo-sharing scandal extends beyond the Marine Corps, and photos of female service members have been shared to a message board that dates back to at least May.

According to the report in BI, members on the message board posted photos apparently stolen from the servicewomen's social media accounts before asking if others had nude photos of the women. Some users of the message board reportedly identified themselves as cadets at military academies, including from the prestigious U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

The original Google Drive folder shared on the Marines United Facebook page was removed, however the report in Task & Purpose says members of the new Facebook group are reconstituting the original cache of explicit photos on a DropBox page and are allegedly posting videos to sites like PornHub.

Military officials denounced the alleged behavior on the message board in statements to BI.

Defense Secretary James Mattis issued a statement Friday regarding the purported photo sharing on the various internet groups.

"The purported actions of civilian and military personnel on social media websites, including some associated with the 'Marines United' group and possibly others, represent egregious violations of the fundamental values that are upheld at the Department of Defense," Mattis said in the statement.

Meanwhile, many of the female service members who have been victims of the photo-sharing have come forward, speaking to reporters and appearing at press conferences.

U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Marisa Woytek and Erika Butner, who served in the Marines until 2016, joined attorney Gloria Allred in a press conference at Allred's office to call for accountability on Wednesday.

“I knew some of these women did not give permission to post their photos and some were unaware that their photos were posted. Multiple victims recently began speaking out about those unauthorized posts, but they received threats and backlash in an attempt to quiet them,” Butner told reporters. “We will not be silenced. As a rape survivor, I can tell you that this exact behavior leads to the normalization of sexual harassment and even sexual violence.”

Below is the full statement issued by the Department of Defense Friday:

The purported actions of civilian and military personnel on social media websites, including some associated with the "Marines United" group and possibly others, represent egregious violations of the fundamental values that are upheld at the Department of Defense, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said today in a statement.

“The chain of command is taking all appropriate action to investigate potential misconduct and to maintain good order and discipline throughout our armed forces,” Mattis said.

“Lack of respect for the dignity and humanity of fellow members of the Department of Defense is unacceptable and harmful to the unit cohesion necessary to battlefield victory,” the secretary continued. “We will not excuse or tolerate such behavior if we are to uphold our values and maintain our ability to defeat the enemy on the battlefield.”

Defense press operations director Navy Capt Jeff Davis told reporters today that Mattis spoke several times during his confirmation process about military service and unit cohesion and how those are predicated on the core values of trust and mutual respect.

All Held Accountable

“Our leaders at all levels of the chain of command will be held accountable to ensure that each member of our military can excel in an environment that maximizes their talents and [will have] no patience for those who would degrade or diminish another service member,” Davis said.

The secretary will meet with uniformed and civilian leaders in the days ahead and ensure that they are taking all appropriate actions to maintain good order and discipline, the captain added.

“The Naval Criminal Investigative Service is investigating … web sites and other services are looking into the matter, as well,” Davis said.

Values

“Our values extend on- and off-duty, and we want personnel experiencing or witnessing online misconduct to promptly report matters to their chain of command,” the captain said.

Davis said service members who might feel uncomfortable reporting alleged online misconduct to their chain of command have alternative avenues that include family support services, equal opportunity offices, Sexual Assault Prevention and Response program, the inspector general and law enforcement.

Image Credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images News/Getty Images