Marine recruiter accused of sexual assault in custody
INDEPENDENCE COUNTY, Ark. (KAIT) – A U.S. Marine Corps recruiter accused of having sex with an underage Independence County child has been arrested.
On Thursday, Dec. 1, a judge issued a warrant for the arrest of 27-year-old Duncan Quade Weathers of Judsonia on one count of first-degree sexual assault.
According to court documents, Weathers is accused of having sex with a child while working as a recruiter for the Marines.
On Monday, Nov. 28, Lieutenant Zach Rawlins spoke with a mother and father about an alleged sexual assault that had been committed against their child, the affidavit stated.
The couple said the child had been in contact with Weathers sometime in late September and early October while he was at the child’s school promoting a career in the Marines.
The parents reportedly said they searched their child’s phone and found nude images of Weathers along with an image of Weathers and the child in the child’s bed.
The child told investigators that Weathers showed up at their home “in his government-issued vehicle” and engaged in sexual intercourse.
“The child advised that after the sexual encounter was over, Duncan received a call from work and he had to return back to Searcy where his office was located,” the affidavit stated.
The family also reportedly provided in written statements that Weathers admitted to having sex with the child and asked them not to contact authorities because “he was going to commit suicide so his wife could receive his military benefits.”
The child also told Lieutenant Rawlins that Weathers had said in the past that he wanted his relationship with recruits “to be on more of a friendly basis.”
On Tuesday, Nov. 29, Rawlins interviewed Weathers at the Independence County Sheriff’s Office.
“Duncan claimed the child was not interested in a career in the Marines,” Rawlins stated in the affidavit. “But he was not able to tell me a good reason for conversing with the child.
When the detective continued to question Weathers, he “requested to stop questioning without legal advice.”
The affidavit stated:
The platform of Marine recruiter allowed Duncan Weathers the ability and opportunity to make contact with a range of young children in multiple school districts. This platform provided Duncan Weathers with a position of trust and authority over these minor children with the purpose of providing these children with knowledge and a pathway into a respectful career. Duncan Weathers used this position of trust and authority to do the exact opposite. Duncan Weathers used this platform to contact this minor child and engage in sexual intercourse with the minor child.
Weathers was arrested Friday, Dec. 2, and booked into the Independence County Detention Center around 11 a.m. on a $20,000 bond. Two hours later, he had bonded out.
According to Independence County Sheriff Shawn Stevens, the Marine Corps is actively cooperating with the sheriff’s department during this investigation.
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