CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. — The Marine lance corporal killed in a shooting at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina last week was a 19-year-old man originally from Northeast Ohio.
Austin B. Schwenk, of Onslow County, North Carolina, died Wednesday in an incident in a barracks room on the base, officials said in a statement. Schwenk enlisted in 2022 and he belonged to the 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, the base said.
Schwenk was a 2022 graduate of Riverside High School in Painesville.
"We are deeply saddened to hear about the tragic loss of Lance Cpl. Austin Schwenk," Riverside Local Schools told 3News in a statement. "Austin was a 2022 Riverside High School graduate who was serving in the military. He was a tremendous young man and will be greatly missed by so many. Our heartfelt condolences go out to Austin’s family and friends."
A second Marine was being held Friday on suspicion of being involved in the death, the base said. Officials called the death a homicide and described the other Marine as a suspect.
"Wednesday, October 19th, Lance Cpl. Austin B. Schwenk with 6th Marine Regiment died from a shooting aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune," the 2nd Marine Division told 3News in a statement. "Law enforcement authorities have apprehended a Marine suspected of involvement in the death. The incident is currently under investigation by NCIS. We will continue to assist the investigating agency to the fullest extent possible. Our deepest condolences go out to the Marine’s family and friends at this time."
The Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) told 3News in a statement that it will be "conducting a thorough investigation into the shooting death" of Schwenk.
The sprawling Camp Lejeune covers about 240 square miles and is home to the II Marine Expeditionary Force. Its beaches and ranges provide training in amphibious assaults and urban warfare and it is used both for U.S. Marine training and for exercises involving other military forces from around the world.
Schwenk's death came two days before the base was scheduled to conduct annual training known as Exercise Urgent Response that “provides an opportunity for tenant commands to develop and exercise emergency security procedures,” according to a press release.
In 2021, a Marine was shot and wounded in a barracks at the base. Authorities later determined that the shooting was accidental.
