Army Warrant Officer 2 Kurt Allen Bennett, who served as an Apache helicopter pilot and commanded a security detail while deployed to Iraq, pleaded guilty in federal court of conspiracy and theft of more than $100,000 in government property while deployed on 2010. Between December 2010 and July 2011, Bennett and a co-conspirator, Sgt. 1st Class Robert Alan Walker, stole more than $1 million worth of government property, according to the U.S. Justice Department. When he is sentenced, Bennett could face five years in prison for the conspiracy charge and 10 years for each count of theft. The stolen items included a lightweight laser designator range finder, a Polaris all-terrain vehicle, and two plasma cutters. The two then attempted to have the contraband shipped to Fort Drum, N.Y., via a military shipping container, through Air Force channels. He then attempted to transport the stolen goods to Georgia in his personal vehicle. Walker entered a guilty plea to the charges earlier, according to the Justice Department, and faces sentencing in August. Bennett’s sentencing date has not been released yet. Bennett served with the 525th Battlefield Surveillance Brigade, XVIII Airborne Corps, based at Fort Bragg, N.C. While in Afghanistan, he served at U.S. Forward Operating Base Spin Boldak and Kandahar Air Base.
