Staff Sgt. Robert Bales, who now stands accused of murdering 16 Afghan civilians, was under investigation for fraud when he joined the Army, according to ABC News. The network reports Bales was a stockbroker before he joined the Army, when an elderly couple claimed he bilked them out of their life savings.
The National Association of Securities Dealers ordered Bales to pay $1.4 million in damages in a 2003 judgment that stemmed from the complaint filed by the elderly couple.
According to ABC:
Fast-forward to today, where Bales has yet to be charged in the Afghan civilian massacre. And his defense attorney John Henry Browne has told the Associated Press that his client's recollection of the events of March 11th are fuzzy:
Bales, 38, is currently being held at the military prison at Fort Leavenworth.
