Authorities in Mississippi are pursuing a criminal investigation into at least one individual for taking debris from the ammunition-strewn wreckage site of the Marine Corps KC-130T that crashed Monday and killed 16 service members.
Mississippi Department of Public Safety Commissioner Marshall Fisher revealed the probe at a press briefing Wednesday and said the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, as well as federal prosecutors in northern Mississippi, are investigating.
Fisher said the "crash area has been secured" but that there are still explosives that need to be recovered by teams on the ground.
Ordnance disposal teams in the area are continuing to detonate some explosives to render them safe, he said.
Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant has asked people to stay away and turn debris over to authorities.
The cause of Monday's crash remains unclear, but initial investigations suggest something happened when the plane was at cruising altitude.
"Indications are something went wrong at cruise altitude," Brig. Gen. Bradley S. James, commanding general, 4th Marine Aircraft Wing, Marines Forces Reserve, said at the press conference in Itta Bena, Mississippi, Wednesday morning.
"There is a large debris pattern" and two major impact areas a mile apart, he said.
At least one aviation official has speculated that the cause of the crash may have been an explosion of ammunition in flight. Witnesses reportedly recalled hearing a loud explosion before the plane began to spiral toward the ground.
Will Nobile, a catfish farmer, told a reporter that he heard an unusually loud rumble in the sky. "It sounded like a big thunderstorm," Nobile said. "Not one big explosion, but a couple of second-long explosions. ... A long, steady rumble is what it was."
The crew included six Marine Raiders and a sailor from the 2nd Marine Raider Battalion at Camp Lejeune and nine other crew members from Marine Aerial Refueling and Transport Squadron 452, a reserve unit from New York, officials said.
The aircraft took off from Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina, on a mission to Naval Air Facility El Centro, California, according to a Marine Corps Forces Reserve statement on Tuesday.
Any items or debris found in the area should be reported to 1-800-ATF-GUNS, Fisher said.
Family members of the fallen service members have been notified, but military officials are withholding the names until 24 hours after the next-of-kin notification.
"What happened Monday is a grim reminder of the sacrifice of the sailors, Marines, airmen that serve our great country," Fisher said. "And even though they weren’t in a combat situation, it’s a loss to families."
Andrea Scott is managing editor of Marine Corps Times. On Twitter: @_andreascott.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Andrea Scott is editor of Marine Corps Times.
