The U.S. Department of Justice criminally charged two Afghan evacuees at Fort McCoy in Wisconsin - including allegations that one suspect engaged in sexual acts with a minor using force and the other for assaulting his spouse by strangling and suffocating her.
The DOJ said in a statement Wednesday that in unrelated cases, the two suspects were charged with crimes while at Fort McCoy. That is the site in Wisconsin where the U.S. has been directing refugees from Afghanistan since the Taliban took over.
Bahrullah Noori, 20, is charged with attempting to engage in a sexual act with a minor using force against that person, and with three counts of engaging in a sexual act with a minor, with one count alleging the use of force, according to the DOJ.
The indictment alleges that the victims were under the age of 16 and were at least four years younger than the defendant.
Mohammad Haroon Imaad, 32, is charged with assaulting his spouse by strangling and suffocating her on Sept. 7, the DOJ said.
Noori and Imaad made initial appearances in Madison on Sept. 16 and are being detained at the Dane County Jail.
Noori and Imaad are set for arraignment on Sept. 23 at 9:30 a.m. and 10:15 a.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephen L. Crocker.
If convicted, Noori faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 30 years and a maximum of life in federal prison on the charges alleging use of force, and a maximum penalty of 15 years on the other two charges.
Imaad faces a maximum penalty of 10 years.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Fort McCoy Police Department investigated the incidents. Assistant U.S. Attorney Taylor Kraus is prosecuting Noori and Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary Corey is prosecuting Imaad.
