The case dates back to 2022, with Manfredo Martin-Michael Madrigal III was also found guilty of lying about his contact with Russian embassy
Former US Army officer and attorney Manfredo Martin-Michael Madrigal III has been sentenced to 54 months in federal prison for willfully deleting army materials, the Department of Justice has announced. The 38-year-old also lied to his superiors that he had never contacted a foreign national, despite previously calling the Russian embassy in Washington DC.
According to a Department of Justice press release, Madrigal was assigned in February 2022 to the US Army Judge Advocate General’s Legal Center and School, where he developed training materials. Earlier that year, the officer came under scrutiny after it transpired that he had failed to report a previous arrest for driving under the influence. While the investigation was underway, he maliciously deleted training materials, filming himself in the process.
Court documents cited by Military Times describe a profanity-laden video in which Madrigal criticized the US Army, saying, “you thought you could easily remove me?” The disgruntled officer then sent the footage to his former romantic partner, who was also a service member.
Madrigal placed a two-minute call to the Russian Embassy in Washington DC, telling his ex-girlfriend, “I am going to teach them a lesson… Russia has reached out to me,” according to court documents. Later on, he claimed to the same woman that the Russians “would like to know what I know.”
Madrigal was discharged from the JAG School on February 22, 2022, and stated in his exit paperwork that he had no unreported contact with foreign nationals. He repeated this claim to the FBI months later.
In August 2022, Madrigal was arrested on cyberstalking charges related to his harassment of an ex-partner. He was later indicted on multiple counts, including willfully injuring US property and making false statements. In July 2024, he pleaded guilty to four charges.
Madrigal’s attorney, John N. Maher, argued that the destroyed materials were “benign and redundant electronic PowerPoint slides.” He also noted that Madrigal was struggling with PTSD-related alcoholism at the time.
Before his assignment to the JAG School, Madrigal served overseas on sensitive operations as an enlisted paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne Division and as a noncommissioned officer with the 75th Ranger Regiment.
