Green Beret killed in Mali discovered SEALs' illicit cash scheme, report says

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Report: Two Navy SEALs eyed in strangulation of Green Beret

A military medical examiner ruled 'homicide by asphyxiation' killed 34-year-old Staff Sgt. Logan J. Melgar while on a secret assignment in Mali; national security correspondent Jennifer Griffin reports from the Pentagon.

Two Navy SEALs being investigated in the strangulation death of Army Sgt. Logan Melgar in Mali in June allegedly offered the Green Beret a cut of the military money they pocketed, but he refused, according to a report.

Melgar confronted the two Navy SEALs after discovering their alleged scheme, where they reportedly took money for themselves from a fund used to pay informants, the Daily Beast reported.

The two men tried to get Melgar to join the racket, but he declined the offer, the report said. Melgar later ended up dead in what appeared to be a strangulation.

Whether the SEALs were involved in the death remained unclear as the investigation continued. The commandos were initially described as “witnesses,” but authorities later changed that to “persons of interest.” Officials said Melgar’s cause of death was “homicide by asphyxiation.”

Melgar, 34, was found dead June 4 at the U.S. Embassy housing he shared in Mali with several other special operations personnel working in West Africa on training and counterterrorism missions, the New York Times reported.

There have been no charges so far in connection with the homicide, but two members of SEAL Team 6 – the famous counterterror unit that killed Usama Bin Laden in 2011 – were placed on administrative leave, pending investigation, according to the Times.

The SEALs reportedly told their military leaders that they found Melgar and tried to save him, according to the Daily Beast. They also said Melgar was intoxicated that night as he was taking hand-to-hand fighting exercises.

The autopsy, however, showed no signs of drug or alcohol usage, according to the report.