A Utah National Guard officer has been sentenced for sexually harassing a subordinate while deployed. (Pixabay)

VICENZA, Italy — A Utah National Guard officer deployed to Djibouti recently received a six-month jail sentence after pleading guilty to sexual harassment during a court-martial at Caserma Ederle in Vicenza.

Maj. Kenton Francis, 52, a behavioral health officer deployed to Combined Joint Task Force–Horn of Africa at Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti, harassed a noncommissioned officer in his unit, the Army’s Office of Special Trial Counsel said in a statement Monday.

A military judge on Jan. 30 also sentenced Francis to dismissal from the Army.

In August 2024, Francis attempted to record the soldier three times with a hidden phone, prosecutors said. The woman, who was changing in an office, noticed the phone propped on a wall locker and obscured by a piece of cardboard.

She reported him to her chain of command, which notified the Army’s Criminal Investigation Division.

During the investigation, several of Francis’ co-workers provided statements that said he had admitted to the recording, the Army statement said. Forensic analysis of his phone corroborated the crime.

“Maj. Francis’ selfish actions in sexually harassing his subordinate enlisted soldier betrayed not only her trust, but also the trust the Army placed in him as the deployed behavioral health officer-in-charge” for the task force, Army prosecutor Maj. Zach Ray in a statement.

Francis is being held at the Army confinement facility in Sembach, Germany. He will eventually be transferred stateside to serve the remainder of his sentence, the statement said.