U.S. Army sergeant pleads guilty to sex ring charges at Texas base
By Jon Herskovitz AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - A U.S. Army soldier accused of running a prostitution ring at Fort Hood, one of the largest Army bases in the country, pled guilty on Wednesday to 15 charges related to the accusation, officials said on Wednesday. Sergeant 1st Class Gregory McQueen is expected to be sentenced as early as Thursday at the court-martial after pleading guilty to charges including conspiracy to solicit prostitution, adultery and dereliction of duty, the base said in a statement. Lawyers said he could face up to about 40 years in prison. He accepted a plea deal where several other charges were dropped, including abusive sexual contact. A female soldier, who was not identified by name, said during testimony that McQueen approached her when she was a 20-year-old single mother struggling to pay her student loan bills, according to the report on TV station KWTX. The witness said McQueen told her to take pictures of herself so he could connect her with high-ranking officers who would pay to have sex with her, according to the report. The Fort Hood case was part of a spate of sex-related incidents in the military that have prompted Congress to look at ways to make top brass more accountable for the conduct of soldiers. (Additional reporting by Lisa Maria Garza; Editing by Eric Walsh)