US soldier leaves Canada for US border to desert army 16 years ago

US soldier  leaves Canada  for US border to  desert army 16 years ago
If the dates he  gave border officials are correct, he  defected after leaving  the army at age 22, around  2008.
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A U.S. soldier has been arrested at the U.S. border after  he crossed from Canada  on foot and  said he was turning himself in for  deserting the military 16  years ago.
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The 38-year-old man used the pedestrian  bridge that crosses the Rainbow Bridge border between Niagara Falls, Ont., and Niagara Falls,  New York, on Tuesday and  moved on, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

The man was escorted  by a border  patrol officer to a secondary  checkpoint for  screening. Border  agents confirmed his identity and found  that he was right, there was an active U.S. Army warrant for desertion on file  with the National Crime Information Center, a U.S.  Army warrant.
He was  arrested and  released to U.S.  military personnel.
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It's unclear how long  he's been in Canada or  if he's lived there, but he only  took a bag with him across the  border.
His name and rank have not been released, nor  has his role in the military at the time of his  departure.
He is reportedly stationed at  the U.S.  military base  in Fort Liberty,  North Carolina. His  file has been forwarded to the  provost's office in Fort Liberty, North  Carolina. The  provost is the base's  head of law enforcement and  advisor on law and order  issues.
Fort Liberty,  formerly known as Fort Bragg, is a  massive military complex, the largest U.S.  military base by population, according to the U.S. Department of  Defense. It is known as the home of the  Air Force and Special Operations  forces.

The U.S. base  did not  respond to a request for  information.
If the dates he  gave border officials are correct, he  surrendered after leaving  the military  at age 22, around  2008.
Under U.S. military law, desertion is defined as  the absence of oneself from military  service without  authorization with  the intent to remain  permanently.
If a soldier deserts his post  during wartime, the  penalty can be  death. By 2008, the U.S. military was actively engaged in the  wars in Iraq and  Afghanistan.
In Afghanistan at  the time, collateral damage  from U.S.  attacks was mounting, with civilian deaths  fueling protests and  undermining support for the war. A surge  in U.S. troops was on the horizon  with the  arrival of  new President Barack  Obama.
In Iraq, the war against Saddam Hussein that began in  2003 had become the  deadliest for U.S.  troops, with 2007 the deadliest year for  U.S. military personnel.

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