LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — The independent prosecutorial organization in the U.S. Air Force intends to re-file criminal charges against a former Las Vegas-based commander, NewsNation affiliate KLAS has learned.
Las Vegas Metro police arrested Lt. Col. Kevin DiFalco for felony sex crimes more than two years ago. DiFalco was accused of grooming and then repeatedly raping a child, the KLAS first reported in September 2022.
DiFalco remains an active-duty member assigned to Nellis Air Force Base where he serves as a special projects officer for the 57th Wing, according to a military spokesperson. He initially faced seven counts of lewdness with a child under 18, and one count of child abuse or neglect in Las Vegas Justice Court, according to court documents. Two months later, records showed the matter was turned over to the military court.
In July, a Nellis Air Force Base spokesperson told KLAS the allegations were being addressed through a military administrative process. Two months later, the circumstances changed.
“On Sept. 18, the Board of Inquiry (BOI) for Lt. Col. Kevin DiFalco was withdrawn due to changes in circumstances of the case,” a spokesperson wrote in an Oct. 9 email after an inquiry from KLAS. “Further details regarding the change in circumstances and re-filing of charges are not publicly releasable at this time.”
DiFalco was commander of the 57th Operations Support Squadron and an F-16 pilot assigned to Nellis Air Force Base. He served in the Thunderbirds program until June 2021.
DiFalco is accused of grooming and then sexually assaulting the child multiple times, a report stated. The arrest report was extremely graphic and much of its contents cannot be reported to protect the child’s identity.
The report also claimed DiFalco told the child “not to say anything,” adding the commander and the person talked regularly on Snapchat — the messaging application where photos and messages disappear.
The allegations became known after an individual came forward to Las Vegas Metro police, the report said. The person reporting the allegations said they had attempted to tell an out-of-state police agency last year, but that “the case was closed.”
The person reporting the allegations also noted a distinct tattoo in DiFalco’s groin area, which investigators corroborated in the report.
DiFalco was commissioned in the Air Force on Jan. 15, 2005, according to a spokesperson. As of Oct. 9, the Air Force’s court-martial docket website listed no information about DiFalco’s case.