Military Deaths

The Defense Department last week identified the following American military personnel killed in Iraq and off the coast of the African nation of Djibouti:

Jay T. Collado, 31, of Columbia, S.C.; staff sergeant, Marine Corps. Collado was killed Monday when his vehicle struck a roadside bomb near Baghdad. He was assigned to Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 267, Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force at Camp Pendleton. As part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, he was attached to the Army’s 4th Infantry Division.

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Matthew D. Conley, 21, of Killen, Ala.; corporal, Marine Corps. Conley was killed Feb. 18 when his vehicle was attacked with an improvised explosive device during combat in Ramadi, Iraq, west of Baghdad. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force in Twentynine Palms, Calif. As part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, his unit was attached to the 2nd Marine Division, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward).

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Brandon R. Dronet, 33, of Erath, La.; first lieutenant, Marine Corps. Dronet was among 10 troops from a counterterrorism force killed Feb. 17 when two transport helicopters crashed into the Gulf of Aden off Djibouti. The accident occurred near the northern coastal town of Ras Siyyan during a training mission in the Godoria Range area. Dronet was assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 464, Marine Air Group 29, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force in New River, N.C. As part of Operation Enduring Freedom, his unit was deployed to Djibouti as part of the U.S.-led Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, which was set up in the former French colony to fight terrorism in nine countries in the region.

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Amos C. Edwards Jr., 41, of Savannah, Ga.; sergeant, Army National Guard. Edwards died of a noncombat-related cause Feb. 17 in Rutbah, Iraq, west of Baghdad. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 118th Field Artillery Regiment, 48th Brigade Combat Team, Army National Guard in Savannah, Ga.

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Almar L. Fitzgerald, 23, of Lexington, S.C.; second lieutenant, Marine Corps. Fitzgerald died Tuesday at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany of injuries suffered Feb. 18 when an improvised explosive device detonated during combat in Iraq’s Al Anbar province, west of Baghdad. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force in Twentynine Palms, Calif. As part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, his unit was attached to the 2nd Marine Division, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward).

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James F. Fordyce, 22, of Newton Square, Pa.; sergeant, Marine Corps. Fordyce was among 10 troops from a counterterrorism force killed Feb. 17 when two transport helicopters crashed into the Gulf of Aden off Djibouti. The accident occurred near the northern coastal town of Ras Siyyan during a training mission in the Godoria Range area. Fordyce was assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 464, Marine Air Group 29, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force in New River, N.C. As part of Operation Enduring Freedom, his unit was deployed to Djibouti as part of the U.S.-led Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, which was set up in the former French colony to fight terrorism in nine countries in the region.

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Anthony R. Garcia, 48, of Fort Worth; captain, Army. Garcia died of a gunshot wound Feb. 17 at his forward operating base in Tikrit, Iraq, north of Baghdad. The shooting is under investigation because it happened on a military base, officials said. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment, 101st Aviation Brigade, 101st Airborne Division at Ft. Campbell, Ky.

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Alecia S. Good, 23, of Broadview Heights, Ohio; senior airman, Air Force. Good was among 10 troops from a counterterrorism force killed Feb. 17 when two transport helicopters crashed into the Gulf of Aden off Djibouti. The accident occurred near the northern coastal town of Ras Siyyan during a training mission in the Godoria Range area. Good was assigned to the 92nd Communications Squadron at Fairchild Air Force Base, Wash. As part of Operation Enduring Freedom, her unit was deployed to Djibouti as part of the U.S.-led Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, which was set up in the former French colony to fight terrorism in nine countries in the region.

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Gregson G. Gourley, 38, of Salt Lake City; staff sergeant, Army. Gourley was among four soldiers killed Wednesday when their Humvee struck a roadside bomb while on patrol in Hawija, Iraq, north of Baghdad. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division at Ft. Campbell, Ky.

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Rickey E. Jones, 21, of Kokomo, Ind.; sergeant, Army. Jones was among four soldiers killed Wednesday when their Humvee struck a roadside bomb while on patrol in Hawija, Iraq, north of Baghdad. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division at Ft. Campbell, Ky.

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Samuel W. Large Jr., 21, of Villa Rica, Ga.; lance corporal, Marine Corps. Large was among 10 troops from a counterterrorism force killed Feb. 17 when two transport helicopters crashed into the Gulf of Aden off Djibouti. The accident occurred near the northern coastal town of Ras Siyyan during a training mission in the Godoria Range area. Large was assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 464, Marine Air Group 29, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force in New River, N.C. As part of Operation Enduring Freedom, his unit was deployed to Djibouti as part of the U.S.-led Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, which was set up in the former French colony to fight terrorism in nine countries in the region.

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Donnie Leo F. Levens, 25, of Long Beach, Miss.; sergeant, Marine Corps. Levens was among 10 troops from a counterterrorism force killed Feb. 17 when two transport helicopters crashed into the Gulf of Aden off Djibouti. The accident occurred near the northern coastal town of Ras Siyyan during a training mission in the Godoria Range area. Levens was assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 464, Marine Air Group 29, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force in New River, N.C. As part of Operation Enduring Freedom, his unit was deployed to Djibouti as part of the U.S.-led Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, which was set up in the former French colony to fight terrorism in nine countries in the region.

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Matthieu Marcellus, 31, of Gainesville, Fla.; corporal, Marine Corps. Marcellus was among 10 troops from a counterterrorism force killed Feb. 17 when two transport helicopters crashed into the Gulf of Aden off Djibouti. The accident occurred near the northern coastal town of Ras Siyyan during a training mission in the Godoria Range area. Marcellus was assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 464, Marine Air Group 29, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force in New River, N.C. As part of Operation Enduring Freedom, his unit was deployed to Djibouti as part of the U.S.-led Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, which was set up in the former French colony to fight terrorism in nine countries in the region.

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Christopher L. Marion, 20, of Pineville, Mo.; private first class, Army. Marion was among four soldiers killed Wednesday when their Humvee struck a roadside bomb while on patrol in Hawija, Iraq, north of Baghdad. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division at Ft. Campbell, Ky.

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Charles E. Matheny IV, 23, of Stanwood, Wash.; sergeant, Army. Matheny was killed Feb. 18 when a roadside bomb exploded near his Humvee in Baghdad. He was assigned to the 704th Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division at Ft. Hood, Texas.

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Jonathan E. McColley, 23, of Gettysburg, Pa.; sergeant, Marine Corps. McColley was among 10 troops from a counterterrorism force killed Feb. 17 when two transport helicopters crashed into the Gulf of Aden off Djibouti. The accident occurred near the northern coastal town of Ras Siyyan during a training mission in the Godoria Range area. McColley was assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 464, Marine Air Group 29, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force in New River, N.C. As part of Operation Enduring Freedom, his unit was deployed to Djibouti as part of the U.S.-led Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, which was set up in the former French colony to fight terrorism in nine countries in the region.

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Luis M. Melendez Sanchez, 33, of Bayamon, Puerto Rico; staff sergeant, Air Force. Melendez Sanchez was among 10 troops from a counterterrorism force killed Feb. 17 when two transport helicopters crashed into the Gulf of Aden off Djibouti. The accident occurred near the northern coastal town of Ras Siyyan during a training mission in the Godoria Range area. Melendez Sanchez was assigned to the 1st Communications Squadron at Langley Air Force Base, Va. As part of Operation Enduring Freedom, his unit was deployed to Djibouti as part of the U.S.-led Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, which was set up in the former French colony to fight terrorism in nine countries in the region.

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Allan A. Morr, 21, of Byron, Mich.; private first class, Army. Morr was among four soldiers killed Wednesday when their Humvee struck a roadside bomb while on patrol in Hawija, Iraq, north of Baghdad. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division at Ft. Campbell, Ky.

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Nicholas J. Sovie, 20, of Ogdensburg, N.Y.; lance corporal, Marine Corps. Sovie was among 10 troops from a counterterrorism force killed Feb. 17 when two transport helicopters crashed into the Gulf of Aden off Djibouti. The accident occurred near the northern coastal town of Ras Siyyan during a training mission in the Godoria Range area. Sovie was assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 464, Marine Air Group 29, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force in New River, N.C. As part of Operation Enduring Freedom, his unit was deployed to Djibouti as part of the U.S.-led Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, which was set up in the former French colony to fight terrorism in nine countries in the region.

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Bryan D. Willard, 33, of Hummelstown, Pa.; captain, Marine Corps. Willard was among 10 troops from a counterterrorism force killed Feb. 17 when two transport helicopters crashed into the Gulf of Aden off Djibouti. The accident occurred near the northern coastal town of Ras Siyyan during a training mission in the Godoria Range area. Willard was assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 464, Marine Air Group 29, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force in New River, N.C. As part of Operation Enduring Freedom, his unit was deployed to Djibouti as part of the U.S.-led Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, which was set up in the former French colony to fight terrorism in nine countries in the region.

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Sources: Department of Defense, Times staff reports and Associated Press