Wednesday, May 30, 2012

R.I.P. - Spc. Tofiga J. Tautolo

DOD Identifies Army Casualty

            The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

            Spc. Tofiga J. Tautolo, 23, of Wilmington, Calif., died May 27, in Bati Kot, Nangarhar province, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when his vehicle was attacked with an enemy improvised explosive device.

            Tautolo was assigned to the 3rd Squadron, 61st Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.

            For more information related to this release, the media may contact the Fort Carson public affairs office at 719-526-7525.

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from contracostatimes.com
by By Art Marroquin:

An Army soldier who briefly lived in Wilmington was killed when his vehicle was attacked by an enemy bomb in Afghanistan over the Memorial Day weekend, the U.S. Department of Defense said Tuesday.

Spc. Tofiga J. Tautolo, 23, died Sunday after the roadside explosive detonated in Bati Kot, located in the Nangarghar province, according to the DOD.

His remains were returned to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware on Monday.

Tautolo was a former Marine who joined the Army last May and earned several medals for his military service, including the Navy Unit Commendation Medal and the National Defense Service Medal, according to records supplied by his base in Fort Carson, Colo.

Tautolo and his wife, Rita, lived in Wilmington for several months in 2010 after he left the Marine Corps but before he enlisted in the Army. Funeral services were pending.

"He was a great man and I'm so sad to see him go," said Rita Tautolo, who now lives in Seattle with the couple's 18-month-old son.

"He was so adoring and friendly to everyone," she said. "He helped everybody who needed help."

Tautolo was a cavalry scout assigned to the 3rd Squadron, 61st Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division in Fort Carson.

While serving in the Marine Corps, Tautolo was deployed to Iraq in 2008 and Afghanistan a year later.
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