Former major general charged with sexual assault, army says

A former senior army officer will appear before a military court later this month on sexual assault charges, an army spokesman said.

Former Major General James Roddis is due to appear before a military court in Bulford on 17 July on charges under Section 3 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003.

An Army spokesman said: “We expect very high standards of conduct from all our personnel and take all allegations of misconduct extremely seriously.”

“Former Major General James Roddis will appear before Bulford Military Court Centre on 17 July 2024 charged with sexual assault under section 3 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003.

“We will not comment further while the legal proceedings are ongoing.”

Roddis received numerous awards throughout his military career, including a Distinguished Service Order – an award for highly successful command and leadership during active operations.

He was appointed MBE and also received two Queen’s Commendations for Valuable Service in 2008 and 2017.

Until recently, Roddis was the strategy director of the Strategic Command, an organization that includes special forces and intelligence units.

In 2014, he was commander of the Highlanders – troops of the 4th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland – which was then the last Scottish battalion to serve in combat in Afghanistan.

In 2021, former Major General Nick Welch faced a four-week trial at the same venue, making him the highest-ranking officer to be court-martialed since 1815.

Welch, who left the military in 2018, was sentenced to 21 months in prison in March 2021 for fraud after falsely claiming more than £48,000 in pocket money to pay his children’s boarding school fees.