A Navy SEAL convicted in the death of a Green Beret soldier is under investigation for pretending to be someone else in a conversation with the victim’s widow at a Las Vegas party, and allegedly asking to go back to her hotel room.
Chief Special Warfare Operator Adam C. Matthews was wearing a Rambo costume when he approached the widow of Staff Sgt. Logan Melgar in January and told her the SEALs involved in her husband’s death were “good guys,” according to the Washington Post.
Melgar died June 4, 2017, after he was strangled as part of a hazing plot in Mali. Four U.S. Special Operations troops were charged with murder.
Matthews approached Melgar’s widow, Michelle, at a charity party hosted by Crye Precision, a company that makes military apparel and tactical gear. An attorney for Matthews said his client and the widow “unintentionally met briefly” that it was an “innocent coincidence with zero romantic intent by either individual.”
“I have discussed this situation at length with the prosecution, and I do not anticipate any disciplinary action being taken against SOC Matthews for this unintentional meeting,” the attorney, Grover Baxley, said.
Others familiar with their encounter said Matthews told Melgar his name was “Mike” and the two talked, danced, and exchanged phone numbers, without Matthews ever revealing who he was.
Baxley said his client was using a pseudonym because “none of these special warfare operators give their real first names when they meet a stranger.”
Witnesses said Matthews asked to go back to Melgar’s hotel room, but she was not interested.
Matthews also allegedly told Melgar that if she knew what really happened in Mali, she would have sympathy for the Navy SEALs.
Some individuals told investigators that Matthews tried to leave the encounter when he realized who Melgar was.
