US Airman Avoids British Trial Over Indecent Exposure Allegations
Hannes Marschalek, a US airman accused of exposing himself to a 16-year-old girl and four other women in Cambridgeshire, England, was able to avoid prosecution in the British legal system after the case was transferred to the US military, has revealed.
In 2022, Cambridgeshire police received complaints that Marschalek had indecently exposed himself to women walking past his home in Littleport, a small town in Cambridgeshire.
One alleged victim reported that Marschalek stood at his door exposing his penis while holding a mobile phone, while another described him posing naked at the door with his hand on the top of the door frame.
Following his arrest and questioning, and after opening an investigation, Cambridgeshire police agreed to transfer the case to the US military at their request three weeks later.
This transfer allowed the US military to conduct a court martial at Marschalek's airbase in 2023, where he negotiated a plea bargain with prosecutors.
Similarities to Another High-Profile Case
The case draws parallels to that of Capt Jacob Wulfson, a US fighter pilot who strangled a British woman in Cambridge city centre in 2023 after meeting her through a dating app. Wulfson's case was also tried in a US military tribunal rather than a British court, prompting public concern.
In both instances, Cambridgeshire police relinquished responsibility for investigating sexual crimes committed on British soil by off-duty US military personnel to the US military, despite UK law granting primary jurisdiction in such cases to the UK authorities.
This year, Marschalek successfully appealed in a US military court, which quashed his conviction on technical grounds. His military lawyers denied he was a "serial flasher."
Background and Evidence
Marschalek, a staff sergeant assigned in 2021 to RAF Lakenheath—the largest US airbase in the UK and the same base where Wulfson was stationed—lived with his wife and daughter in Littleport, approximately a 25-minute drive from the base.
Court martial documents reveal that in July 2022, Marschalek sent texts to two friends stating he had "definitely" flashed women from his home.
"I definitely just flashed a couple ladies walking from the train. LOL."
"I took all my clothes off when I walked in. I went to go open a window and I was standing right in front of it when they walked by."
Military prosecutors argued these texts showed he repeatedly exposed himself to unsuspecting women and then bragged and laughed about it.
Arrest and Victim Statements
On 9 October 2022, Cambridgeshire police arrested Marschalek at his home following allegations from complainants aged between 16 and 24 that he had exposed himself multiple times over the preceding two months.
One woman described seeing him standing at or near the doorway with the door fully open, shirtless, shorts pulled down to his knees, and his penis exposed. She noted,
"His left hand was holding his cellphone with the screen facing toward him and the camera facing out at an angle toward where [she] was standing … His right hand was on his penis."
Another witness said she observed him "posing" completely naked at the door, holding a blue Pepsi can in his left hand with his right hand above his head on the door frame. One woman later reported feeling unsafe in her hometown due to the incidents.
A Cambridgeshire police spokesperson confirmed that upon arresting Marschalek, officers learned of his US military employment and notified his employers.
Police continued their investigation, taking statements from three women while Marschalek was on bail.
Transfer of Investigation to US Military
During the investigation, an official request was received from US military authorities to transfer the case for further progression.
"During the course of the investigation an official request was received from the relevant authorities within the US military asking us to consider transferring the investigation to them for onward progression,"
the police spokesperson said.
On 31 October 2022, Cambridgeshire police decided to hand over the investigation to the US military.
"This was carefully considered and all victims were updated in regards to the decision made to transfer the investigations to the US military for continued investigation,"
they added.
The force stated that all victims were consulted prior to the decision and no complaints were received at that time.
A US Air Force spokesperson said the military had negotiated jurisdiction over the case with local police using all available facts.
Statements from Marschalek and Court Martial Proceedings
In interviews with military investigators, Marschalek acknowledged,
"I understand and believe my behaviour, specifically opening the door to be seen naked, which sexually excited me, could have been perceived by others as vulgar, obscene and repugnant."
He faced two charges of indecent conduct at a 2023 court martial. A plea bargain was reached in which one charge was dismissed.
Marschalek admitted to standing naked at his door on two occasions between August and October 2022. The original charge alleging masturbation at the door was removed from the final charge.
In his defense, Marschalek stated,
"I removed my clothes after working out and placed them in the washing machine and I was naked when I opened the front door of my residence."
"I was there for 20 seconds at most."
"My house did not have air conditioning, so to get a cross-breeze going in the house and cool things down, [I] opened a front and back door of [my] residence after exercising."
The military judge sentenced Marschalek to two months in a correctional facility at Lakenheath and dismissed him from the Air Force.
Had the case been prosecuted in English courts, Marschalek would have faced a different legal outcome.
Appeal and Current Status
In April 2023, a US military appeals court overturned Marschalek's conviction, ruling that prosecutors had charged him under an incorrect offense. Prosecutors are seeking to challenge this ruling.
Marschalek has since returned to the US, where he remains on the sex offender registry due to his indecent conduct in the UK. He has been contacted for comment.
Broader Implications and Concerns
Details of Marschalek's case add to ongoing concerns about the prosecution of US military personnel for crimes committed on UK soil.
's investigative series, Base Justice, has highlighted an obscure agreement that tends to favor US military requests to take over investigations of crimes committed off-base by off-duty American personnel.
While UK police have the authority to refuse such requests and have done so in many cases, some forces appear to be ceding control, including in sexual crime cases, as the US military seeks jurisdiction.
The Wulfson case has already raised concerns at the highest levels of the UK government.
A spokesperson for the prime minister stated it was regrettable that Wulfson avoided trial under English law and was instead tried by a US court martial.
Additionally, a UK government official told parliament they want the US government to provide a full account of the circumstances surrounding the case.
