Navy unsure sailor's death was hate crime

CAMP PENDLETON, Calif., July 3 (UPI) -- U.S. Navy officials said they had no indication that the shooting death of a gay sailor at Camp Pendleton, Calif., was a hate crime.

Capt. Matt Brown, director of public affairs for Navy Region Southwest, said the military also couldn't confirm that Seaman August Provost was harassed in the days before he was killed, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported Thursday.

"There is no evidence or information that suggests this is a hate crime," Brown said during a news conference.

Provost began his four-hour shift as a sentry guard at 11:30 p.m. Monday. His relief found the seaman's body at the post on the western edge of Camp Pendleton. Brown didn't reveal how many times Provost was shot, but confirmed someone tried to set the post on fire.

Gay activists urged the military to conduct a full, transparent investigation, as have two U.S. congressional members from the San Diego area, Reps. Bob Filner and Susan Davis.

The Naval Criminal Investigative Service released one person it held in Provost's death, considered a potential homicide, the Union-Tribune reported. Another "person of interest" is in custody.

"This is a very hard time," Brown said. "We've lost a shipmate, we've lost a family member."