Pentagon to Reopen Probe of Vice Admiral Who Tried to Bring Back Grenada Rifles

WASHINGTON —  The Defense Department’s chief internal investigator plans a new investigation of Vice Adm. Joseph Metcalf’s conduct in attempting to bring Soviet-made automatic rifles back to the United States after the 1983 invasion of Grenada, Pentagon officials said Wednesday.

The investigation, to be carried out by Inspector General Joseph Sherrick, also will focus on the manner in which Metcalf was disciplined by the Navy after customs agents seized the weapons, as well as the conduct of other officers who accompanied Metcalf.

The Pentagon officials, who asked not to be identified, said the office of Deputy Defense Secretary William H. Taft IV had decided to ask for the investigation, and that Defense Secretary Caspar W. Weinberger was aware of it.

Sherrick’s investigation will be the second probe of the Grenada guns affair within the Pentagon. Taft previously ordered the department’s general counsel to investigate the matter, which also has come under scrutiny by congressional committees.

The Navy has acknowledged that Metcalf tried to bring back 24 Soviet-made AK-47 automatic rifles from Grenada in November, 1983. In the wake of the incident, he received a letter of “caution” but was subsequently promoted.

By contrast, several lower-ranking Marines and Army personnel who brought back weapons from Grenada were court-martialed.

The Navy has defended Metcalf’s treatment, noting that more than 300 Marines were granted amnesty when they voluntarily turned in souvenir weapons.