article: The U.S. Army Sergeant who left his post in Afghanistan and was held by the Taliban for five years was found to have be 'going over to the other side with a deliberate plan,' according to a former military intelligence officer. Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer said on Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor on Monday night that Bowe Bergdahl 'had Afghan contacts and he was actually trying to offer himself up with the Taliban.' The former military intelligence officer said he had been told the information by  two senior sources who knew about a 2009 Naval Criminal Investigative Service investigation into Bergdahl's activities. Scroll down for video . Bowe Bergdahl, the U.S. Army Sergeant who left his post in Afghanistan and was held by the Taliban for five years was found to have be 'going over to the other side with a deliberate plan,' according to a former military intelligence officer . The investigation reportedly included a forensic review of Bergdahl's computer which showed his apparent intent to travel to Uzbekistan. 'He had made contact with local Afghans and wanted to be moved to Uzbekistan and then made contact with the Russians because he wanted to talk to Russian organized crime,' Shaffer told O'Reilly. 'Clearly he was not all there relating to what he was doing. I think we're going to see more and more, as this report is made public that there were a number of disconcerting things within Bergdahl.' Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer (pictured)  said on Fox News ' 'The O'Reilly Factor' on Monday night that Bowe Bergdahl 'had Afghan contacts and he was actually trying to offer himself up with the Taliban. Both are very severe' He said the NCIS investigaiton,  which included interviews with squad mates, indicated that Bergdahl made contact with an Afghan in an attempt to prepare for his departure. Bowe Bergdahl will face charges under articles 85 and 99 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice . 'Desertion with Intent to Shirk Important or Hazardous Duty': . Article 85 charges a soldier with desertion if he 'quits his unit, organization, or place of duty with intent to avoid hazardous duty or to shirk important service.' It can carry a death sentence but the military won't seek that option in the Bergdahl case . MAXIMUM SENTENCE: 5 years in a military prison plus reduction in rank, dishonorable discharge and forfeiture of pay . 'Misbehavior Before the Enemy by Endangering the Safety of a Command, Unit or Place': . Article 99 charges a servicemember with running away from a fighting enemy, throwing down his weapons, abandoning his platoon or other fighting unit, or otherwise purposely failing 'to do his utmost to encounter, engage, capture, or destroy any enemy troops, combatants, vessels, aircraft, or any other thing, which it is his duty so to encounter, engage, capture, or destroy.' MAXIMUM SENTENCE: life in a military prison plus reduction in rank, dishonorable discharge and forfeiture of pay . Army officials announced Thursday that his Article 32 hearing will be held July 8 at Fort Sam Houston, Texas - he is charged with desertion and misbehavior before the enemy. That proceeding is similar to a civilian grand jury. From there, it could be referred to a court-martial and go to trial. His attorney says Bergdahl was trying to find a U.S. general officer to report a disturbing situation when he left his combat outpost. Eugene Fidell, the attorney leading Bergdahl's defense, said in a letter released this week that the Army major general who investigated Bergdahl's capture in Afghanistan found he did not intend to remain away from his base permanently. Bergdahl disappeared in June, 2009 from a combat post in Paktika Province in eastern Afghanistan and was captured by the Taliban. He spent five years as a prisoner of war before he was freed last summer in a prisoner swap that angered members of congress members and some members of his unit. After an investigation of the circumstances of his capture, Bergdahl was charged this week with desertion and misbehavior before the enemy, counts that could lead to life in prison. Documents released by his defense lawyers suggested the tack they may take in defending Bergdahl. The papers also included a statement from Bergdahl about his attempts to escape from his Taliban captors and his beatings while a prisoner. In a March 2 letter to Army General Mark Milley, who was responsible for deciding how to proceed with the case, Fidell said an investigation by an Army major general had concluded that Bergdahl did not plan to desert. 'While hedging its bets, the report basically concludes that Sergeant Bergdahl did not intend to remain away from the Army permanently, as classic 'long' desertion requires,' Fidell wrote. 'It also concludes that his specific intent was to bring what he thought were disturbing circumstances to the attention of the nearest general office,' he added. Bowe Bergdahl, shown before his handover to US troops in May 2014 . Fidell declined to elaborate further on Friday. Bergdahl was released in exchange for five Taliban leaders held at Guantanamo Bay. They were sent to Qatar and had to remain there for a year. Some U.S. lawmakers were angered by Bergdahl's release because they were not given 30 days notice before the transfer of the Guantanamo prisoners, as required by law. Some fellow soldiers also said he had deserted. 'While many Americans have taken a broader and more sympathetic view, the depth and breadth of the current hostility to Sergeant Bergdahl are extraordinary and have enveloped the case with a lynch mob atmosphere,' Fidell said. 'Taliban five': The terror leaders traded for Bergdahl were (top, from left): Abdul Haq Wasiq, Khirullah Said Wali Khairkhwa, Mohammad Nabi Omari; and (bottom from left): Mohammad A Fazl, Mullah Norullah Noori . He faces up to life in prison if convicted of misbehavior before the enemy. A former platoon-mate of Bergdahl told Daily Mail Online that Bergdahl is trying to win a public-relations battle with new claims about his defense strategy. CNN reported based on a Pentagon leak, that Bergdahl told Army investigators he left his forward operating base in 2009 so he could report 'a breakdown in discipline and order' to military higher-ups – not with desertion in mind. 'This is clearly just a stunt to build sympathy before they go to trial,' said retired Sgt. Jordan Vaughn, who spoke for the first time since the Army announced Bergdahl would be court-martialed. 'No logical person would ever take the actions he undertook for the reasons he is now saying,' Vaughn told Daily Mail Online. He said the claim broadcast by CNN is 'ridiculous,' and that the Army's decision to charge Bergdahl with desertion is 'in direct conflict' with any claim that he intended to be a whistle-blower. CNN reported that a Defense Department official said Bergdahl had 'concerns about leadership issues at his base. 'He needs to be held responsible for what he did, for abandoning his post, for abandoning his platoon, for putting thousands of American soldiers, Marines and the whole United States military, thousands of members, in more danger, putting us into spots we wouldn't already have been in, had he not walked away,' he said. President Barack Obama announced the return of Bergdahl on May 31, 2014 in a White House Rose Garden press event as the soldier's parents Jani (left) and Bob (right) looked on . Vaughn also noted that his decision 'cost the US multiple soldiers' lives, five Taliban POWs, and the incredible monetary expense of searching for him.' However, both Cornelison and Buetow, who have left the US Army, stopped short of demanding that Sgt Bergdahl face prison. 'I don't want to ruin his life,' said Buetow. 'He does need to be dishonorably discharged, have all his ranks taken away, and he does not need to receive any benefits or back pay.' He added that he was proud the military had reached its decision despite the fact it would heap further pressure on the Obama administration for negotiating with the Taliban over a man accused of deserting. 'You can't get around the fact this makes some people look bad,' he said. But they had little sympathy for Sgt Bergdahl's account of being beaten and tortured during his time in Taliban captivity. 'He wouldn't have been put in that position, he wouldn't have been tortured, he wouldn't have been put through all that hardship if he'd never walked away,' said Cornelison. The punishments suggested by the veterans are within the range open to the court. It can reduce him to E-1, forfeit his pay and give him a dishonorable discharge.
highlights: Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer said  Bowe Bergdahl 'had Afghan contacts and he was actually trying to offer himself up with the Taliban'
  The former military intelligence officer said he had been told the information by two senior sources who knew about a 2009 Naval Criminal Investigative Service investigation into Bergdahl's activities .
  Bergdahl is charged with desertion and misbehavior before the enemy .
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