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Shawn Claude Crowell, 40, who was assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Wing Atlantic at Naval Station Norfolk from December 2022 to September 2024, is facing a decade in prison after pleading guilty to theft of government property.
According to court documents, beginning in January and June 2023, Crowell stole seven sets of Night Vision Goggles (NVGs, or NODs), two Matbock Tarsier Eclipse lenses, and eight NVG battery packs that had a value of more than $160,000.
To further his operation, Crowell used online ads to sell all five sets of the stolen NVGs to third-party purchasers for $19,947.
In March 2023, he also listed the two Matbock Tarsier Eclipse lenses, which are regulated by the International Trafficking in Arms Regulations, and the following month, sold the battery packs.
Investigators from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) interviewed Crowell in May 2023, and during a search of his vehicle, they recovered one of the stolen sets of NVGs.
When he is sentenced in April 2025, Crowell will face up to 10 years in prison.
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