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Marine in TikTok video says he buried a body, now claims it was a misunderstanding

Marine in TikTok video says apparent confession about burying a body is all a misunderstanding.
Posted 2023-10-25T23:01:20+00:00 - Updated 2023-10-25T23:19:47+00:00
Man in viral TikTok wants to clear name, says he didn't help bury body at Camp LeJeune

A man who apparently confessed to burying a body at Camp Lejeune in a viral TikTok video says it was a misunderstanding.

"This video surfaced about earlier this year for the first time that I'd seen it," Sgt. Jonathon Fehr said of the viral TikTok video. "It got sent to my spouse's place of work."

The video shows Fehr claiming that he and two others buried a body at Camp Lejeune, sparking a Naval Criminal Investigative Service investigation.

Fehr says he was heavily intoxicated when he filmed the TikTok video about four years ago. He claims that the story he told in the video was one a senior officer told him when he was younger.

"It's like, the people commenting on this video don't know who I am," Fehr said. "All of my friends have told me, 'We know you don't worry about this.' And I understand that but I'm the type of person who doesn't want people to think bad of me."

In the video, the Fehr is speaking to a woman and says the victim was a “biker dude" killed after a fight outside a nightspot in Sneads Ferry.

He says him and the others put the body in the back of a truck and looked for a place to dispose of the body, according to the video.

Fehr says that only a portion of the video was shared, omitting the crucial part where he clarifies that the story was not real.

"I saw that and told my spouse to immediately report it to NCIS. I haven't done anything wrong," Fehr said. "This will all come back as debunked, which it did."

He says his ex-wife recorded the video, and it has already affected his career. He was dropped from drill sergeant school when the video became public.

"I was about a month into school and it got posted on TikTok, and in the back of my mind, I was like I know who posted this," Fehr said.

Fehr says he tries to be a role model for younger members of the Marines but he's now concerned people will see this video and judge him the wrong way.

"I joined the Marines Corps and stayed in the Marine Corps because I like leading younger people," Fehr said. "I like leading my junior Marines. I like being that person people look up to. With that video out there, all these comments out there, can you really look up to somebody like that when something is being said about them?"

The incident is still under investigation.

Fehr, claiming he didn't commit a crime but is concerned about the impact on his livelihood, is seeking legal counsel.

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