Twentynine Palms Marine accused of sexual assault of a minor

Deputies arrested a Marine at the Twentynine Palms base earlier this week for allegedly sexually assaulting a minor.

An active-duty United States Marine was arrested Wednesday afternoon at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center (MCAGCC) in Twentynine Palms.

According to a news release by the Morongo Basin Station, deputies were originally called to the scene to locate a juvenile runaway. Deputies found the juvenile and learned that the Marine helped the minor illegally enter the base.

Investigators say they learned that the Marine was communicating with the juvenile on social media and paid for a rideshare service to transport the juvenile from Fontana to Twentynine Palms.

Detectives executed a search warrant at Marine's barracks room, where they collected evidence before arresting the Marine for unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor.

The Marine has been booked at the Morongo Basin Jail on $25,000 bail and was expected to appear in court on Friday. We will update the article with their identity once they are officially charged by the District Attorney's Office. We have reached out to the DA's office to confirm that they have been charged.

The juvenile was safely reunited with her family.

Anyone with information related to this investigation is asked to contact the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department, Morongo Basin Station at (760)366-4175. Anyone wishing to remain anonymous may contact We-Tip at 1-888-78-CRIME.