Former Air Force Member Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for Sexual Assault at Air Base in England

MIAMI – James Loubeau, a former U.S. Air Force member, was sentenced today to five years in prison to be followed by 20 months of supervised release for sexually assaulting another service member at Royal Air Force Mildenhall, United Kingdom, in May 2019. In April 2025, Loubeau, 37, of Miami, pleaded guilty to two counts of abusive sexual contact.

As part of his guilty plea, Loubeau admitted that, on May 4, 2019, he sexually assaulted the victim on base 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.

In May 2019, Loubeau and the victim met at a bar on the Air Force base where the victim consumed several alcoholic beverages. Later, a friend of the victim accompanied the victim back to her on-base housing and helped her get ready for bed. The friend then left and the victim fell asleep alone. Around 2:30 a.m., the victim awoke to find Loubeau on top of her in her bed. The victim almost immediately called two friends to say she had been raped. Surveillance video captured Loubeau after he left the victim’s room to return to his dorm room. A medical examination revealed that the victim had injuries consistent with sexual contact, and DNA testing later linked Loubeau to the sexual assault.  

U.S. Attorney Hayden P. O’Byrne for the Southern District of Florida; Matthew R. Galeotti, Head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Special Agent in Charge Michael Koellner of Air Force Office of Special Investigations Detachment 512; and Special Agent in Charge Brett D. Skiles of the FBI, Miami Field Office made the announcement.

The Air Force Office of Special Investigations and the FBI investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Bertila Fernandez for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Alexandra Skinnion of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section are prosecuting the case.

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 24-cr-20454.

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