Fort Bliss soldier accused of sexually assaulting Pfc. Asia Graham to be court-martialed

EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — A Fort Bliss soldier accused of sexually assaulting fellow soldier Pfc. Asia Graham will be court-martialed, according to Fort Bliss officials.

“On January 8, 2021, Maj. Gen. Sean C. Bernabe, 1st Armored Division commander, personally ordered the referral of charges against a Fort Bliss Private First Class to a general court-martial,” Lt. Col. Allie Payne, 1st Armored Division and Fort Bliss Public Affairs Officer said in a statement. “The referred charges include one specification alleging the sexual assault of Pfc. Asia M. Graham. A military judge will be detailed to the case to arraign the Soldier and docket a trial date.”

More information will be available at the time of arraignment, according to officials.

Graham’s family said she told them she was raped in December 2019, the same month she first arrived to Fort Bliss.

Fort Bliss officials said Graham made an initial report of an alleged sexual assault on June 1, 2020. At the time, the soldier alleged a fellow soldier stationed at Fort Bliss sexually assaulted her in December 2019.  Fort Bliss said Army Criminal Investigative Command investigated the matter.

As KTSM 9 News previously reported, 19-year-old Pfc. Asia Graham was found unresponsive in her barracks on New Year’s Eve and was later pronounced dead by the Fort Bliss Department of Emergency Services personnel.

According to special agents with the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, “foul play is not suspected at this point in the investigation” of Graham’s death.

Graham’s official cause of death is still pending an autopsy. However, her family told KTSM they have been told that she died of asphyxiation, adding that officials have not explained the moments leading up to her death, leaving them with many questions.

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