Former Air Force Member Indicted for 2019 Sexual Assault at Air Base in the United Kingdom

MIAMI — A former U.S. Air Force member was charged in an indictment unsealed today in the Southern District of Florida with sexually assaulting another service member at Royal Air Force Mildenhall, United Kingdom, in May 2019.

The indictment charges James Loubeau, 36, of Miami, with one count of sexual abuse and two counts of abusive sexual contact. Loubeau made his initial court appearance today in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

According to the indictment, on May 4, 2019, Loubeau sexually assaulted the victim at Royal Air Force Mildenhall. Loubeau was later discharged from the Air Force in March 2020. The charges were brought under the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act (MEJA), which establishes U.S. jurisdiction over certain offenses committed abroad by, among others, persons who served with the armed forces but who are no longer subject to military prosecution.

If convicted, Loubeau faces a maximum penalty of life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida; Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Special Agent in Charge Michael Koellner of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations (OSI); and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of FBI’s Miami Field Office made the announcement.

The Air Force OSI and FBI are investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Arielle Klepach for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Ryan Lipes of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section are prosecuting the case.

An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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