2/2 deserters arrested in Connecticut - Military News | News From Afghanistan, Iraq And Around The World - Military Times

2/2 deserters arrested in Connecticut

Two Marine deserters under the command of a battalion currently in Afghanistan were arrested in Connecticut early Wednesday, Marine officials said.

Pvts. David A. Nunziata and Ryan C. Schultz, both 19, had been on an unauthorized absence since Dec. 23, said Maj. Shawn Haney, a spokeswoman with Manpower & Reserve Affairs. Both are assigned to 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines, out of Camp Lejeune, N.C., where Nunziata served as a mortarman and Schultz served as a machine gunner.

The battalion deployed for Afghanistan in October, and has suffered at least three casualties within the past month, as coalition forces led by Marine units launched Operation Moshtarak to take control of Marjah, a Taliban stronghold in Helmand province. It was not immediately clear why the two privates did not deploy with the unit. Both of them have been in the Corps for less than a year and neither has any deployment history, Haney said.

The two Marines were taken into custody by police in Milford, Conn., shortly after midnight following a routine traffic stop. Police determined they had outstanding warrants, according to a report by the New Haven Register.