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Manfredo Madrigal, 36, a former attorney and Army Officer assigned to the United States Army Judge Advocate General’s Legal Center and School (JAG School) has been indicted by a grand jury on an eight-count indictment for various offenses.
Specifically, Madrigal was charged with:
- Four counts of lying to multiple federal agencies;
- Witness tampering;
- Attempted witness tampering;
- Deletion of Army materials;
- Cyberstalking.
Federal prosecutors said that Madrigal was an active-duty Army Officer and attorney when he was assigned to the JAG School in early 2022.
He previously served multiple overseas tours of duty as an enlisted soldier with various units, including the 75th Ranger Regiment and 82nd Airborne Division prior to his discharge in February for failing to report a previous conviction for driving under the influence (DUI).
He was arrested in August 2022.
The indictment alleges that overnight between Sunday, Feb. 6 and Monday, Feb. 7, while his discharge from the Army was pending, Madrigal went rogue and deleted online JAG training materials, filming himself in the process and narrating his motivation.
“‘I’m gonna f—k* you,” and ‘I’m going to bring their house down on them,’” Madrigal can be heard stating in the video recovered by investigators.
The same night, Madrigal contacted his first victim - a former romantic partner - and informed her that Russia reached out to him, wanted to know what he knew, and that he intended to travel to Russia.
Madrigal’s cellphone records indicate he contacted the Russian embassy.
On Tuesday, Feb. 22, Madrigal was discharged from the JAG School and claimed in out-processing paperwork that he had no unreported contact with a foreign national, which was contrary to Madrigal’s phone records and statements he made to his first victim.
In April and May this year, Madrigal was interviewed by the FBI regarding his actions, during which he made multiple false statements regarding his foreign contact and the deletion of the training materials.
“For example, Madrigal claimed he learned of the deletion from a coworker but denied any involvement,” prosecutors said. “Per text messages, however, Madrigal filmed his efforts to delete the module and claimed credit.”
During the FBI investigation, it was discovered that Madrigal had been threatening his first victim both in-person and through electronic means, including messages threatening her safety, career, family, and pet.
Those messages also contained compromising and sexually explicit photos of the victim, who said she was “terrified” of Madrigal, adding that he previously threatened her with a firearm at her home and damaged belongings.
Amid the investigation, it was also discovered that Madrigal also pressured another former romantic partner to provide false information about him to the FBI. She admitted that he coached her prior to her FBI interview, and they discussed deleting incriminating messages from his cell phone.
In August, Madrigal and his second victim were involved in a dispute in Arkansas, during which Madrigal allegedly pointed a pistol at her, leading to his arrest. He was later transported back to Virginia to face federal charges for his conduct involving his initial victim.
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