A Fort Cavazos soldier was charged last week with arson, possession of child pornography and vandalism after allegedly damaging property and setting a fire in the Texas base's barracks last year.
The soldier, Pvt. 2nd Class Javier Pantoja Tinoco, was arraigned nearly a year after Military.com first reported that two soldiers were suspected of setting a barracks laundry room on fire and defacing barracks walls with spray-painted racial slurs, male genitalia and apparent gang signs.
Pantoja Tinoco's charge sheet alleges he intentionally damaged at least $1,000 of military property after he drunkenly set fire to washing machines. He was also discovered to “knowingly and wrongfully possess child pornography,” including at least one video of what appeared to be a child engaging in sexually explicit conduct, according to the charges.
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Pantoja Tinoco pleaded not guilty to the charges and faces a court martial by an enlisted panel.
“The Army thoroughly investigated an incident involving a fire in the barracks on April 22, 2023,” 1st Cavalry Division public affairs wrote to Military.com in a statement Friday.
“As a result of that investigation, PV2 Javier Pantoja Tinoco was charged with possession of child pornography, arson, damaging military property, drunk and disorderly conduct, and conduct prejudicial to good order and discipline, in violation of the Uniform Code of…
