A group of male submariners traded illicit videos of female officers in various stages of undress as if they were Pokémon cards , a U.S. Navy prosecutor said on Thursday . Navy prosecutors presented evidence against two of 12 male sailors accused of illegally making and trading videos of female officers aboard a nuclear submarine that was among the first to allow American women to serve alongside men . The two men in court Thursday , both missile technicians aboard the USS Wyoming nuclear submarine , based at Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base in Georgia , were accused of trading the videos with other sailors . Going under : The USS Wyoming submarine , based at the Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base in Georgia . A group of 12 male submariners serving aboard the vessel stand accused of taking secret footage of their female colleagues undressing and trading it 'like Pokémon cards ' Another sailor aboard the Wyoming made the videos with his smartphone and then told others that he had a 'gift for them , ' Navy prosecuting attorney Lieutenant Commander . Lee Marsh said . Once the sailor who took the videos arrived back onshore , Marsh said , he shared them with the others by 'bumping ' their smartphones together . The videos were not posted online . 'Videos were treated like Pokémon . Something to be collected , ' Marsh said during the preliminary hearing in the case against two missile technicians charged with conspiracy to distribute recordings of private areas of female officers . Navy Vice Admiral Michael Connor , commander of the nation 's submarine fleet , has characterized the case as a 'serious sexual offence , with significant penalties . ' The case highlights issues the Navy has faced in switching to co-ed crews on ballistic-missile submarines . It began the practice in 2011 . More than 50 women now serve aboard submarines , and Connor has said while the change to coed crews has not been without incident , overall it has been a success . Navy Lt. Paul Hochmuth , defense attorney for one of the accused missile technicians who was in court on Thursday , said his client did n't know what the files were when he accepted the 'gift ' on his phone . Cartoon capers : The submariners on the USS Wyoming submarine were accused of capturing illicit footage of their female colleagues undressing for the shower and trading it like Pokémon cards , which are based on the popular children 's cartoon show ( pictured ) He argued that the government was unfairly describing the videos as graphic , as they were of poor quality , only ever viewed on smartphones , and showed only partial nudity . 'At no point can you ever see a full length view of the person ... You might see a face ... then a leg ... or a butt ... but there is no full length view , ' Hochmuth said . Marsh said the quality of the videos is irrelevant because they were made without consent and that they were explicit . 'The videos consist of ... undressing for the shower and drying off from the shower , ' he said . The hearing was presided over by a Naval officer , who listened to statements from both sides and will issue a recommendation to Rear Admiral Charles Richard , commander of submarine group 10 . Richard will decide whether to pursue court martial trials against the defendants , dismiss the charges , or use other administrative methods to deal with the cases .
A gang of 12 submariners were accused of serious sexual offences after secretly filming their female colleagues getting undressed . They are alleged to have shared the videos , including ' breasts ' , ' breasts ' and ' butts ' , like ' something to be collected ' The group included missile technicians aboard the USS Wyoming nuclear submarine , stationed in Georgia . They referred to the sexy girls as ' gifts '