National Guardsman raped teenage cadet in COVID-19 quarantine: report

A Louisiana National Guardsman is accused of raping a teenage cadet while she was in quarantine after testing positive for COVID-19

Steffan Mouton was arrested on Aug. 23 and was supplied the girl and other Youth Challenge Program members with alcohol at the Gillis Long Center in Carville, Iberville Parish, police said.

"These ladies were all positive for COVID," St. Gabriel Police Chief Kevin Ambeau told WBRZ News.

"They were separated from the other cadets and quarantined. He went into the dorm where they were quarantined and committed this act. He didn't care if they were positive or not, damn it, he wanted it.”

Ambeau said other cadets corroborated the victim’s story.

“They said Mouton gave them alcohol, got them drunk and came back at 4 a.m., at which point he pulled the girl into the bathroom, where she said the rape happened,” Ambeau told the Baton Rouge Advocate.

Mouton is being held ​​at Iberbville Parish Jail on $260,000 bond for second-degree rape and contributing to the delinquency of a minor charges.

“The Louisiana National Guard Youth Challenge Program (YCP) is a voluntary, residential education program which offers adolescents an opportunity to change their future,” the National Guard spokesperson told WBRZ 2 News.

“Our most important priority is the safety and wellbeing of our cadets. We, The Youth Challenge Program, contacted the St. Gabriel Police Department immediately upon report of this alleged incident,” it went on. “Currently, the investigation is on-going and we are committed to cooperating fully with local law enforcement.”