The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Marines drank urine during obscene initiation ceremony
Nightclub reveller joined in spectacle at DeVitos
A group of Royal Marines have been thrown out of the military after taking part in an initiation ceremony in front of shocked revellers at a nightclub.
The trio, along with a member of the public at DeVitos nightclub in Arbroath who joined in during the incident, face jail after they admitted charges of public indecency.
Forfar Sheriff Court heard the three marines took part in the incident in the club’s smoking area, which was caught on CCTV.
The court heard Luke Bowen urinated in the mouths of fellow marines Jordan Coia and Ben James then committed a further lewd act.
Bowen then drank his own urine as well as that of others before exposing himself in front of onlookers.
A fourth man, Craig Lynch, who is not in the military, then performed a sex act on another person.
None of the men will face being placed on the sex offenders register after the Crown accepted there was “no significant sexual element” to the crime.
Lynch, 42, of Aberdeen; James, 22, of Thirsk; Bowen, 25, of Chichester, and Coia, 22, whose addresses were given as c/o RM Condor, pled guilty to a charge of public indecency.
Jacob Holt, 21, Ryan Fowler, 23, Michael Byrne, 26, all care of RM Condor in Arbroath, had their not guilty pleas to a charge of public indecency accepted.
It is understood they remain serving Royal Marines.
A court source said: “This is a massive embarrassment for the marines – it’s not the image they want to give off.
“Initiations of some kind have existed in the military for decades but they want to eradicate this kind of behaviour, especially when it is in public as this was.”
Solicitor Nick Whelan, defending Coia, said: “This resulted in the ending of service for a number of these young men, including Mr Coia.
“What he thought would be a lifetime relationship with the military has come to an end after two-and-a-half years of service.
“The case has been hanging over these individuals and has prevented him obtaining employment as it is still pending.”
Nick Markowski, defending James, said: “He was also discharged from the Royal Marines.”
Lynne Sturrock, for Bowen, added: “He’s been discharged and now lives with his parents.”
Sheriff John Rafferty deferred sentence on the four men for social work background reports and released them on bail meantime.
A Royal Navy spokesperson said: “We can confirm that three individuals entered guilty pleas and will appear for sentencing on October 26 2017.
“The Naval Service will not tolerate any behaviour which is unbecoming of a Royal Marine and, as a result of this incident, the individuals have been discharged. While legal proceedings continue it would be inappropriate to comment further.”