Protest over femicide rise

THE Government is to investigate the death of a soldier whose body lay undiscovered in an Army base for three weeks.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has personally ordered the probe into the mystery at Catterick Garrison.

It will be separate to the Army’s own inquiry – and it comes as Lance Corporal Bernard Mongan’s widow today demands the truth about how her husband died.

The 33-year-old Royal Signalman was found in his room at the North Yorkshire base on January 23 after his superiors had failed to spot he was missing.

The Iraq War veteran is said to have been bullied.

His body was so badly decomposed a cause of death has still not been established. Police believe he died on January 1 or 2 when he last used his phone.

Now his widow Beth – separated from L Cpl Mongan but still close to the father of her three daughters – wants the kind of investigation denied for so long to families of four soldiers who died from gunshot wounds at the Deepcut base in Surrey between 1995 and 2002.

Beth, 30, said: “I want the truth and the only way that will happen is through some sort of public inquiry. What happened to Bernie is shameful. The Army have still not verified whether he was listed as AWOL.”

L Cpl Mongan had been due to transfer to another unit, 77 Brigade in Berkshire, a week after he was last seen alive. But no one there flagged up he was missing.

FAILURE

“Why did no one check his room at Catterick when he failed to arrive at his new unit?” said Beth.

“It’s a massive duty of care failure by the Army.”

Last week we revealed how L Cpl Mongan told his wife he had been assaulted by two soldiers in November 2018 after being stationed at Catterick earlier that year. It is understood the incident was reported. Beth said: “He had been bullied quite a bit.”

L Cpl Mongan joined the Army in 2004 and fought in the Iraq War. He left in 2012 but rejoined the Royal Signals in 2015 and was serving with the 1st Military Intelligence battalion.

Beth said: “I still can’t believe he’s

OUR STORY Last week’s front page gone. We were in touch on January 1 and he seemed happy. He spoke about wanting to take the girls to Lapland.

“I wasn’t too worried when a couple of calls went to his voicemail as I knew he was being posted and was involved in important work.

“Then I was told he was found dead

on his bed. We are still awaiting postmortem results.”

His mum Mary, 51, said: “I can’t get over what has happened to my son. My child is dead and I have no answers.”

Emma Norton, director of the Centre for Military Justice, said: “It’s vital there is an independent investigation. What cannot happen is for the Army to be left to investigate this matter.” Karen

McLeish, whose son Alistair, 18, was found hanged at Catterick in July 2018, said she was still waiting for answers about his death.

She said: “There was nothing to suggest he was going to take his own life. An investigation is needed to find out what is so badly wrong at Catterick.”

HUNDREDS of protestors, mainly female, gathered in Mexico City following a woman’s brutal murder.

Ingrid Escamilla, 25, was allegedly knifed to death by a man she lived with, and a paper ran leaked photos of her mutilated body.

The pics sparked fury and follow a rise in femicide – the killing of women due to their gender – with over 700 cases probed. Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said: “It’s appalling when hatred reaches extremes.”

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