Overview
- Michael Webber, 43, was sentenced at Bulford Military Court to six months in prison, ordered to serve half in custody, placed on the sex offenders register for seven years, and formally demoted to the ranks.
- The assault occurred during a July 2021 training stay on Thorney Island, where Webber tried to kiss Beck and touched her thigh, leaving her so frightened she hid and slept in her car before reporting it the next morning.
- Beck’s chain of command handled her complaint as a minor administrative matter, securing a letter of apology from Webber instead of a police referral, and his career continued with a later promotion.
- A February 2025 inquest found the Army’s failure to report the assault breached policy and contributed more than minimally to Beck’s death by suicide that December, with separate evidence of persistent harassment by her line manager.
- After the inquest, Wiltshire Police referred the case to defence investigators and the Service Prosecuting Authority; Webber pleaded guilty in September, and officials have since issued apologies and outlined cultural and disciplinary reforms.