Associated Press Newswires
Copyright 2002. The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
Friday, August 23, 2002
Army sending health experts to Fort Bragg to look for links to spousal killings
By ROBERT BURNS, AP Military Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - Alarmed by a series of domestic killings and
suicides at Fort Bragg, N.C., the Army is sending in a team of health
specialists to study a range of possible explanations, officials said
Friday.

The Army disputed reports that it is focusing mainly on the
possibility of a link to use of the anti-malarial drug, Lariam, although
officials said this was among the issues to be examined.

Lariam was prescribed to troops who fought in Afghanistan. Three of
the four soldiers involved in the killings had recently returned from
duty there, although the Army will not say how many of them took Lariam.

"Contrary to news reports speculating that the team will focus
primarily on anti-malaria prophylaxis/medications taken by soldiers, the
team will consult with local medical and unit/installation leadership at
Fort Bragg on a wide variety of possible contributing factors," an Army
statement said.

The team will consider factors related to how the Army prepares
soldiers and their families to deal with personal and other problems
before an overseas deployment and supports them upon their return.

The Army said it would look into "behavioral health issues" related
to overseas deployments that are not unique to Fort Bragg, home of the
Army Special Operations Command and the 18th Airborne Corps. Soldiers
from those units featured prominently in U.S. ground operations in
Afghanistan.

The inquiry at Fort Bragg will last most of next week, the Army said. Consultants in psychology, social work and psychiatry will join Army
epidemiologists and chaplains as well as officials from the government's
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"Members will also look at specific data associated with recent cases
looking for patterns, organizational dynamics and medical issues that
may have contributing significance," the Army statement said.

The Fort Bragg killings began June 11.

That day, Sgt. 1st Class Rigoberto Nieves, 32, a Special Forces
soldier, fatally shot his wife and then himself, two days after he had
returned from Afghanistan. Later that month, according to police
investigators, another Special Forces soldier, Master Sgt. William
Wright, 36, killed his wife and weeks later led authorities to her body.

On July 19, Sgt. 1st Class Brandon Floyd, reportedly a member of the
secret Delta Force, shot his wife and then killed himself.

Also in July, Marilyn Griffin, who had separated from her husband in
May, was stabbed to death and her body set on fire in her home. Sgt.
Cedric Griffin, 28, who is with the 18th Airborne Corps and had never
been to Afghanistan, was charged.

Local police said all the couples had reportedly had marital
problems. Army officials say there is no evidence that Lariam, the
anti-malarial medication, played any role. Yet questions about the drug
persist.

The manufacturer of Lariam, Roche Laboratories, acknowledges reports
of suicide and suicidal thoughts attributed to Lariam, also known as
mefloquine. But company spokesman Terence Hurley said they are extremely
rare, "only a small percentage of the more than 25 million people that
have successfully used Lariam."

Roche says some cases of severe neuropsychiatric disorders have been
reported in connection with Lariam use. These include anxiety,
depression, panic attacks, hallucinations, aggression and psychotic
reactions.

The World Health Organization puts the incidence of serious
neuropsychiatric effects from the drug at 5 in 100,000. Of the millions
of travelers given mefloquine each year, one in 6,000 to one in about
10,000 will experience some kind of serious adverse reaction, the WHO
says.