A Marine based at Camp Pendleton in California has been charged with sexual assault after a missing 14-year-old girl was found in his barracks. The Marine, whose identity has not been released, has also been charged with violating liberty restriction in an unrelated case. The charges come after military police found the teenager in the Marine's barracks on June 28. The girl had been missing for more than two weeks before she was located.

Authorities have not disclosed any details about how the Marine and the teenager met or how she gained access to the base. The girl's grandmother reported her missing on June 13, and there had been speculation that she was sold by a sex trafficker. After she was discovered in the barracks, the girl was returned to her grandmother.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for August 17, at which point authorities will decide whether the Marine will face a court-martial. The Marine is a member of Combat Logistics Battalion 5, 1st Marine Logistics Group. Further information about the case has not been released in order to protect the integrity of the ongoing investigation. As of now, the Marine is presumed innocent until proven guilty.