The Marine Corps has identified Lance Cpl. Austin B. Schwenk, a 19-year-old Marine assigned to 2nd Battalion, 6th Marines, as the victim of a shooting that occurred at a Camp Lejeune barracks in North Carolina on Wednesday.
This incident is currently under investigation as a homicide, with another Marine suspected of involvement in the death having been apprehended. However, the identity of the suspect has not been disclosed by the service.
The shooting took place within an on-base barracks, and the ongoing investigation is being led by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS), according to a spokesperson from the 2nd Marine Division.
“We will continue to assist the investigating agency to the fullest extent possible,” 1st Lt. Olivia Giarrizzo, the spokesperson, said in an emailed statement. “Our deepest condolences go out to the Marine’s family and friends at this time.”
The Marine Corps is fully cooperating with the investigative agency and extends its deepest condolences to the Marine’s family and friends during this difficult time.
Lance Cpl. Schwenk, originally from Onslow County, North Carolina, enlisted in the Marines in June 2022. He specialized as an electro-optical ordnance repairer, responsible for repairing missile electronics, night vision devices, and other fire control systems.
“Lance Cpl. Austin B. Schwenk, 19, died in the shooting in a Camp Lejeune barracks late Wednesday in what service officials described as an “isolated incident between two Marines,”Stars and Stripes reported on Twitter.
Lance Cpl. Austin B. Schwenk, 19, died in the shooting in a Camp Lejeune barracks late Wednesday in what service officials described as an “isolated incident between two Marines.”https://t.co/l5qurkxxqQ— Stars and Stripes (@starsandstripes) October 20, 2023
Tragically, Camp Lejeune has experienced previous incidents, including an accidental shooting in a barracks in 2021 and a separate tragedy in July when three lance corporals were found dead from carbon monoxide poisoning at a gas station outside the installation, with the circumstances of the exposure remaining uncertain.
“Up to two million people could have been affected, and residents blame the contamination for a cluster of rare cancers around the base. Hundreds of former residents have tried to sue the Department of Defense over the scandal, but courts haven’t been sympathetic.” United Voice reported.
“However, in 2012, the Senate passed the Janey Ensminger Act, named after a Marine NCO’s daughter who died of cancer at age nine, which authorizes government-funded medical care to anyone affected by contamination between 1957 and 1987,” the report added.
