Report: Pentagon concluded in 2010 that Bergdahl walked away from unit

A 2010 Pentagon investigation concluded Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl walked away from his unit in Afghanistan a year earlier, leading to his capture by the Taliban, the Associated Press reported.

A former official who has read the military’s report told the AP the evidence was “incontrovertible” that Bergdahl walked away from his unit in 2009. 

{mosads}The official said the review was not a criminal inquiry, and didn’t formally accuse him of deserting the military.

Members of his unit interviewed during the investigation said Bergdahl was a naïve, “delusional” person who thought he could help the Afghan people by leaving his Army post, the official said, according to the news service.

This comes after other reports in which his fellow troops called him a deserter.

Since Bergdahl’s disappearance, the U.S. government has been monitoring his whereabouts with drones, spies and satellites.

A U.S. defense official familiar with the efforts to free him told the AP the administration had been working in recent months to split the Taliban network.

Last Tuesday, President Obama spoke to the Qatari emir about the proposed transfers.

After Bergdahl’s release Saturday night in Afghanistan, five top Taliban prisoners at Guantanamo Bay were released and sent to Qatar. They must remain there for one year before returning to Afghanistan. 

Despite the 2010 report, Obama administration officials have downplayed whether Bergdahl walked away from his post.

“We still don’t have a complete picture of what caused him to leave his base that night,” Pentagon spokesman Rear Adm. John Kirby said on CNN’s “New Day” Monday.

Being held captive for five years, Kirby said, is a “pretty high price to pay after walking off a base.”