A colonel assigned to Schriever Air Force Base and under investigation of committing several sex offenses was found dead early Sunday at his Colorado Springs home.
Air Force Col. Eugene Marcus Caughey, 46, was due to face a court-martial on Oct. 17 for multiple charges, including sexual offenses, adultery and conduct unbecoming an officer and gentleman.
The military announced his death on Monday.
Caughey was assigned as an Air Force Space Command special staff member and had been in the Air Force since 1993, according to an Air Force news release.
Caughey was a former 50th Space Wing vice commander at Schriever, just east of Colorado Springs, before he was removed from his position on June 17, 2015, when the investigation into his alleged misconduct began.
The Air Force says his exact cause of death is under investigation by the Colorado Springs Police Department. Officials did not elaborate.
Colorado Springs police say they are still investigating the case. They were called to Caughey’s home on reports of a suicide, but that his official cause of death is pending an autopsy.
“We’re conducting a death of unknown origin investigation,” Sgt. Tim Stankey, a Colorado Springs police spokesman, said.
The Associated Press reports Caughey’s civilian attorney, Ryan Coward, said the commander was looking forward to his day in court and had been participating in his defense.
“I think this surprised everybody,” Coward said, according to the AP, adding that his client had served honorably for 20 years. “This is just a very tragic event that occurred for him and his family.”
In 2014, Caughey spoke at a Schriever memorial for the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, of which he was a survivor.
“I was a captain inside the Pentagon that morning when a plane crashed into the west side of the building,” Caughey was quoted as saying. ..Source.. by Jesse Paul
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