The commanding officer of a guided missile destroyer was fired after giving his crew an award to commemorate their interdiction of an Iranian weapons shipment in 2019. The trophy reportedly featured a demilitarized AK-47 rifle that was seized in the operation.
Commander Frank Azzarello was captain of the USS Forrest Sherman when the destroyer intercepted an unmarked dhow in the North Arabian Sea. The crew uncovered a cache of weapons that were believed to be headed to Yemen to supply Houthi forces in that country’s civil war, according to the U.S. Naval Institute.
Cmdr. Azzarello wanted to acknowledge the successful mission by creating a plaque for the crew using the AK-47 that had been rendered inert, the U.S. Naval Institute said Thursday citing his lawyer, Tim Parlatore.
“He was trying to create something nice and good for the crew — a morale booster for the men and women on the ship to commemorate their good work,” Mr. Parlatore told military.com. “It’s not like he stole an enemy weapon to put into his personal collection or something.”
The military has strict rules about possessing so called “war trophies” but there is a question whether Cmdr. Azzarello had been familiar with the regulations, Mr. Parlatore said.
Navy officials said he was relieved by Rear Adm. Ryan Scholl, commander of Carrier Strike Group Eight, due to a “loss of confidence in command.” Navy officials did not provide further details of the firing.
Cmdr. Azzarello was fired Wednesday. He has been assigned to the staff at Naval Surface Force Atlantic.