U.S. National Charged with Sexual Abuse While Overseas

Andrew Warren, 41, has been charged in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia with one count of sexual abuse in Algeria within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States.

The one-count indictment, returned by a federal grand jury on June 18, 2009, and unsealed today, alleges that Warren sexually assaulted another individual on Feb. 17, 2008. The indictment also alleges that at the time of the alleged sexual assault, the victim was incapable of appraising the nature of the conduct and was physically incapable of declining participation in, or communicating unwillingness to engage in the sexual act. Warren surrendered to Special Agents of the Diplomatic Security Service this morning and was arraigned this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge John M. Facciola this afternoon.

If convicted, Warren faces up to life in prison.

The case is being investigated by the Diplomatic Security Service. The Bureau of Diplomatic Security is the U.S. Department of State's law enforcement and security arm. The case is being prosecuted by attorneys from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Criminal Division’s Domestic Security Section.

An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until convicted through due process of law.

Indictment