A 25-year-old Texan is the latest loss suffered by the 3rd Infantry Division, the Department of Defense said Thursday.
Staff Sgt. Jeffery L. Hartley died Tuesday in Kharguliah, Iraq, after being wounded when his vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb.
Hartley, a native of Hempstead, Texas, joined the Army in June 2001 and worked as a radio operator/maintainer with the 1st Battalion, 10th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team out of Fort Benning.
He was scheduled to return home in May from his second deployment with the division - his fifth deployment in less than seven years of service.
A Fort Benning spokesperson said Hartley was both Ranger and Airborne qualified and received more than 20 awards and decorations while in uniform, including the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Combat Action Badge and the Army Commendation Medal with Valor.
The son of a longtime Hempstead Police Department officer, family friend Det. Jason Martinez told the Houston Chronicle Hartley "truly loved being in the military."
As of late Thursday, the Hartley family had not released a statement to the media.