U.S., Soviet Navies Sort Through Questions in Rape Allegation

U.S. Navy officials are puzzling over allegations by a petty officer that she was raped by a Soviet sailor after she boarded one of the visiting warships last week.

The 26-year-old third class petty officer told authorities she was touring the Soviet destroyer Admiral Vinogradov when she was sexually assaulted about 8 p.m. last Tuesday, the day the three Soviet ships arrived for the first such visit to the West Coast in more than 100 years. The woman said the rape occurred hours after the brouhaha and official ceremony welcoming the ships to San Diego.

Officials say it is unclear how the woman, who said she was dressed in civilian clothing, could have boarded the ship three hours after it was closed to American visitors.

To board the vessel after hours, American guests had to make arrangements in advance and were provided with an escort, said Cmdr. Doug Schamp, a Navy spokesman. Security aboard the three vessels was tight, and no one without official business was supposed to be aboard during that time, he said. On the Admiral Vinogradov, guards were posted about 10 meters apart and prevented public visitors from going below the ship’s deck during viewing hours, Schamp said.

The woman told authorities she was touring the vessel--one of two open to the public--and became separated from her friends. U.S. Navy officials decline to say what happened to her friends or whether they reported her absence. The petty officer reported the alleged assault two days after it occurred, sources said.

The woman, who said she had been raped once before, when she was 19, cannot describe her assailant, sources said. Evidence is lacking because the petty officer washed the clothes she was wearing at the time.

“What we have is very inconclusive, and there are many holes in her story,” said one Navy officer familiar with the incident. “It is indeed a puzzle.”

Officials with the U.S. Naval Investigative Services and Soviet navy officers are investigating the case. NIS agents turned over an account of the episode to Soviet officials Saturday, NIS spokesman Mike Bourke said.

“The Soviets indicated they are continuing to pursue their evaluation, and we are still evaluating,” said Lt. Cmdr. Robert Pritchard, a Navy spokesman.

For officials who had worked to ensure the success of the Soviet visit, word of the alleged rape was an unpleasant cap to what had been considered a successful week.

“It wasn’t a fun way to end the week,” Schamp said. “That was the only hint of anything that could have gone wrong. We didn’t have anyone get drunk and fall in the water. We didn’t have any accidents. The visit was as smooth as silk.”

The navy-to-navy exchange, intended to further good will and understanding, accomplished its official goal, officers say.

“We achieved the objective. The (alleged rape) is an isolated incident--if indeed it did occur,” Pritchard said. “There’s nobody who feels it cast a pall over the port visit. It’s unfortunate that it occurred, but I don’t think it spoiled the visit at all.”