More Human Remains Found on Fort Bragg

The Latest

Unfortunately, finding dead bodies on Fort Bragg is not unusual. The latest incidence of this happened just eight days ago.

According to Army Times, Sergeant Major Alex Licea, a spokesman for the XVIII Airborne Corps, briefed the press on how a body was found on a routine patrol by Range Control officials on November 21st. The remains were found in an abandoned civilian vehicle parked near the range. Licea noted that “Fort Bragg Emergency Services were immediately dispatched to the scene.” 

The incident remains under investigation, and the name of the deceased, and their cause of death, have not yet been made public. It is also unknown how long the body might have been there or if there are signs of foul play.

Ms. Sands

In early October 2021, remains were found near Interstate 295 near Fort Bragg. The Army investigated the death. In December of that year, the Criminal Investigation Division (CID) issued a press release stating they had identified the body. It read in part, “It is with great sadness, we report that the deceased person has been positively identified as Priscilla Sands. We hope the community will come together during this difficult time. Please keep the family and friends in your thoughts and prayers. Our deepest and sincere condolences go out to the family and friends of Priscilla Sands.”

A cause of death was not released. The 56-year-old woman was last seen walking away from her home on the 6000 block of Charles Street in Fayetteville.

The Mystery of Major Ewoldsen

On April 1st, 2022, SOFREP’s own Matt Hill reported on the case of a Major assigned to Army Special Operations Command at Fort Bragg being found unconscious in his vehicle. The officer, Eric “Adam” Ewoldsen, was taken to Womack Army Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. At his death, Lt. Gen. Jonathan Braga, Commanding General of US Army Special Operations Command, released a statement. It read, “The sudden loss of Adam is a tragedy to his family, friends, and fellow soldiers. He was an outstanding officer and teammate, and he will be sorely missed.”

As with Ms. Sand’s case, CID also investigated his case. But that’s where the trail runs cold. Try as I might, I have not been able to find any official or reliable reports on how Major Ewoldsen may have died. There are guesses and a little speculation on social media, but I will not report them here. It’s pretty odd and puzzling. Maybe it’s time to file a Freedom of Information Act request for information.

The Delta Force Murders

In December 2020, SOFREP’s Editor in Chief, Sean Spoonts, reported on the strange case of an active-duty Delta Force soldier and a veteran found dead on Fort Bragg. “Strange” is too soft of a description. Nevertheless, the matter is straight-up bizarre and a must-read for anyone interested in true crime. A hunter traveling between Holland Drop Zone and Lake MacArthur noticed a pickup truck stuck up to its rear axle.

The man spotted a body a few feet from the truck; a black male in his 30s sprawled on the ground with a slight wound in the area of his right temple. The hunter called 911, and Army MPs and CID were on the scene before long. They investigated the pickup and made a startling discovery. It was a white male in his mid to late 30s clad only in boxer shorts. His pale corpse was riddled with bullet holes and curled into the fetal position. This was 37-year-old William Lavigne III, a Master Sergeant and former 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment–Delta (aka Delta Force) soldier.

A subsequent SOFREP investigation uncovered a police report stating that Lavigne had previously been charged with numerous felonies, including narcotics possession and harboring an escapee. The cops seized the drugs, a crack pipe, firearms, and a digital scale from his property. The DA dismissed the case, and Lavigne’s record was marked with the words “dismissal without leave.” In the state of North Carolina, that means the issue has been dismissed and cannot be opened for further litigation. When this happens, it can be expunged from one’s record.

Lavigne, however, could not seem to keep out of trouble and was facing felony charges for something else at the time his body was found. To read the whole story, click here.

Captain MacDonald

I could go on and on about other deaths on Fort Bragg, dating back to the infamous case of doctor Jeffrey MacDonald the Special Forces captain convicted of murdering his wife and children on the post in 1970. MacDonald’s case is one of the most litigated murder cases in American criminal history. Yet, at age 79, he remains incarcerated at Federal Correctional Institution, Cumberland, a medium-security prison in Maryland.