Velasco and two other sailors, including his superior, testified Tuesday that Mays was combative, disrespectful and had a poor attitude. Navy prosecutors have alleged that Mays did it because he was “disgruntled” after dropping out of Navy SEAL training on the fifth day and being assigned to the ship’s deck duty, which largely involved cleaning the vessel. Some were caught smoking on board in violation of the rules, and there was a problem with brass parts being stolen, and contractors cutting hoses.īarthel said there was a roster with 12,000 contractors but “there was no way to monitor who went on and off the ship.” Officials assessing the ship’s damage found three of four fire stations on the ship had evidence of tampering: Fire hoses had been disconnected and one was cut, according to court documents.ĭefense attorney Gary Barthel said thousands of contractors were coming and going from the ship at the time. Investigators concluded that cardboard boxes in the lower vehicle storage were ignited, and the blaze rapidly spread in the area cluttered with forklifts, hoses, pallets, and other equipment used by contractors.
The hearing will determine whether there is enough evidence for the case to proceed to a military trial.ĭefense attorneys challenged several of the government’s witnesses about their accounts given to investigators a year ago, after several of them recalled details differently or not at all during the hearing.Ībout 160 sailors and officers were on board when the fire started on the 840-foot (256-meter) vessel, which had been docked at Naval Base San Diego while undergoing a two-year, $250 million upgrade. The hearing that started Monday is expected to wrap up Wednesday when the defense is expected to call its witnesses to the stand. Mays is charged with aggravated arson and the willful hazarding of a vessel. The amphibious assault ship was damaged so badly that it had to be scuttled. It marked one of the worst noncombat warship disasters in recent memory.
Mays has denied igniting the blaze that burned for nearly five days on the USS Bonhomme Richard in July 2020, injuring dozens of personnel aboard and sending acrid smoke wafting over San Diego. I did it.” Then she said he mumbled some more before she heard him say: “It had to be done.”ĭefense attorneys said he was joking and speaking sarcastically after being surprised that he was being locked up. 20, 2020, testified that she heard a stunned Mays mumble to himself: “I’m guilty, I guess. Mays, 20, was a seaman apprentice at the time and has since been promoted to seaman.Īnother sailor, Carissa Tubman, who was assigned to escorting Mays to the brig on Aug. Petty Officer 3rd Class Kenji Velasco blamed his nervousness for the changes to his story and said in military court during a preliminary hearing that he was now “100 percent” sure that he saw the suspect, Ryan Sawyer Mays, descend to the ship’s lower vehicle storage area on the day of the fire. warship last year testified Tuesday that he is certain that he saw the suspect in the area where the flames ignited, but acknowledged changing the account he initially told investigators. SAN DIEGO (AP) - A key witness in the Navy’s case against a junior sailor accused of setting the fire that destroyed a U.S.
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