Eric T Nakamura, False Assault Report, South Carolina 2020

Eric T. Nakamura, 49, of Beaufort, S.C., pleaded guilty to fabricating a violent assault at Hunter Army Airfield, falsely claiming he was stabbed and robbed by a soldier in uniform during a July 2020 incident. The contractor admitted lying to U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command (CID) agents, setting off a false investigation into a non-existent attacker.

Nakamura told investigators he was attacked inside the lab where he worked by a man wearing an Army uniform with the name tape ‘Brown,’ who allegedly stabbed him with a knife and took his belongings. The story unraveled when CID agents obtained surveillance footage from a building across the street, showing no intruder entered the facility. Confronted with the evidence, Nakamura confessed: he had stabbed himself with a kitchen knife.

He pleaded guilty to one count of False Statement Made to a Department or Agency of the United States, a federal crime carrying a maximum penalty of five years in prison, hefty fines, and up to five years of supervised release. Federal parole does not exist, meaning any sentence imposed will be served in full.

Acting U.S. Attorney David H. Estes condemned the deception, calling it repulsive—especially amid heightened national concern over real attacks on Asian-Americans. ‘At a time when there is heightened awareness in the United States regarding attacks on Asian-Americans, it is repulsive that Eric Nakamura would fake his own assault,’ Estes said. ‘Army investigators did outstanding work in exposing his false claims and exonerating potential suspects.’

Supervisory Special Agent Michael David of the U.S. Army CID’s Hunter Army Airfield office said Nakamura’s actions showed ‘poor judgement’ and wasted critical investigative resources. ‘Deliberately lying to our agents about being attacked on this installation showed poor judgement,’ David said. ‘Mr. Nakamura’s guilty plea demonstrates the level of commitment our CID agents have toward finding the truth.’

The case is being prosecuted by Southern District of Georgia Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Darron J. Hubbard. U.S. Army CID continues to investigate, focusing on the circumstances surrounding the self-inflicted injury and the broader impact of false reporting on military installations.