Fort Lewis O-5 charged with felony harassment

Lewis O-5 charged with felony harassment
By Manuel Valdes and Shannon Dininny - The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Mar 14, 2012 8:39:13 EDT
TACOMA, Wash. — A 20-year Army officer in Washington state threatened to blow up the state Capitol building and kill his superior officer, his estranged wife and his girlfriend, authorities said Tuesday. The case added scrutiny to the troubled base of a soldier accused of killing 16 Afghan civilians in a shooting spree.

Lt. Col. Robert E. Underwood, who was arrested Monday night and pleaded not guilty to felony harassment charges, told his girlfriend he'd paid a hit man $150,000 to kill both his wife and superior officer, according to court documents.

Underwood threatened to kill the girlfriend after she confronted him about a naked photograph of his daughter on his laptop computer, the documents said. And he reportedly threatened to blow up the state Capitol building in Olympia, Pierce County prosecutor Mark Lindquist said, although no charges have been filed on those accusations.

"We charged him with three counts of felony harassment. That's what the evidence supports, that's what we can prove," he said. "But it's an ongoing investigation."

Joint Base Lewis-McChord, a sprawling base south of Seattle, is already under scrutiny this week because a soldier based there has been held in Afghanistan following the massacre that left 16 Afghan civilians dead in two villages.
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