A U.S. Army combat medic who fled to the United Kingdom while under investigation in 2022 was convicted by a military jury this month of desertion, larceny and making a false official statement, according to the Army Office of Special Trial Counsel.
The ruling marked the end of a yearslong effort to return him to military custody.
Spc. Oliver E. Board, 33, disappeared after the Army charged him with fraudulently procuring family separation pay, which is a monthly allowance to help families offset expenses when a service member’s job forces them to be apart for over 30 days.
At the same time, Board was also under investigation for having lewd communications with a 14-year-old, a charge that was withdrawn after the victim decided not to participate.
A military judge sentenced Board to 326 days of incarceration and a $3,925 fine with 180 more days in jail if left unpaid. He was given a bad conduct discharge from the service.
Board will be jailed at the Midwest Joint Regional Confinement Facility at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, the Army announced.
The United Kingdom Metropolitan Police took the fugitive into custody after receiving tips from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children that Board had been associated with possession and distribution of child pornography in 2024.
In December 2025, Board was returned to the U.S. military and was subsequently court-martialed at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, for desertion and the other charges. The office said the child pornography allegation is under consideration for a potential second trial.
At the time of his desertion, Board was an activated reservist who was demobilizing from Title 10 orders. He was recalled to duty due to the investigation and assigned to the General Fort Leonard Wood Community Hospital.
The Army Criminal Investigation Division investigated the case, the office said, also thanking law enforcement in the United Kingdom.
Board’s sentence follows the conviction of another former U.S. soldier for desertion — in addition to rape and indecent assault — after living on the run for nearly three decades.
Eve Sampson is a reporter and former Army officer. She has covered conflict across the world, writing for The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Associated Press.
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