Michael Webber

Warrant Officer Michael Webber, a 43-year-old senior non-commissioned officer in the British Army, was involved in a sexual assault incident at Larkhill Camp in Wiltshire that had tragic consequences for his victim, teenage soldier Gunner Jaysley Beck.

The assault occurred in 2021, when Webber engaged Gunner Beck in a drinking game. During the incident, he touched her thigh, pinned her down, and attempted to kiss her. Gunner Beck resisted by pushing him away and subsequently locked herself in her car for the night. The following morning, she reported the assault to her superior officers, but the matter was not escalated to the police at the time. Instead, Webber wrote a letter of apology to Gunner Beck and was later promoted, highlighting significant failures in the Army's handling of the complaint.

Tragically, Gunner Beck, originally from Oxen Park in Cumbria, was found dead at Larkhill Camp later in 2021, having taken her own life. An inquest into her death, concluded in February 2024, ruled that the sexual assault by Webber and the Army's inadequate response 'more than minimally' contributed to her suicide. The coroner emphasised the Army's failure to take appropriate action following the report.

Webber pleaded guilty to the sexual assault charge during proceedings related to the inquest. In October 2024, he was sentenced to six months' imprisonment by a court martial and added to the sex offenders register for seven years. The Attorney General's office received several complaints about the leniency of the sentence, with multiple requests to review it under unduly lenient sentence provisions. As of 6 November 2025, the Law Officers were considering whether to refer the case to the Court Martial Appeal Court within the 28-day window from sentencing.

The case has drawn attention to systemic issues within the military, prompting the Ministry of Defence to establish a serious crime command and a violence against women and girls taskforce. Gunner Beck's mother, Leighann McCreedy, publicly criticised the Army for prioritising its own protection over that of recruits, stating in a BBC Radio 4 interview that policies must change to safeguard young women in the forces.