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MP killed in attack one day before departure

Jun-18-2004 » Filed Under: Iraq News

The DOD has identified the soldiers killed in the mortar attack at LSA Anaconda on Wednesday. Even though official confirmation did not come until today, Stars & Stripes published an article yesterday about one of soldiers killed that will break your heart. Peace be with the families and friends of those we lost.

[Link to Full Article]
By Rick Scavetta, Stars and Stripes

CAMP ANACONDA, Iraq — After a year in combat, Sgt. Arthur Mastrapa was waiting outside the post exchange Wednesday when an enemy rocket ended his life. He was supposed to fly home Thursday.

Mastrapa, 36, a military policeman from Apopka, Fla., was one of three troops killed in the attack on the logistical base at Balad Air Base. Three 127 mm rockets hit the camp, base officials said, including one direct hit on the PX, which was filled with shopping troops. [...]

Mastrapa’s death devastated fellow troops who gathered Thursday to remember him.

“We were leaving,” said Michael Porter, 28, of Ocala, Fla. “We thought we all made it.”

On Wednesday afternoon, Mastrapa and his pals were in the Internet café when a mortar alarm sounded, ending their computer use, Porter said.

Mastrapa was researching hotels online and had just found a nice place to take his wife, Jennifer, for her birthday next week. He hung around the PX area hoping to go back online and book a romantic getaway for her, his friends said.

There's much more.


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