Agustin Gutierrez
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Age: 19
From: San Jacinto, Calif., died March 29 in North Kabul, Afghanistan,
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Incident: Army Spc. Agustin Gutierrez died March 29 in North Kabul, Afghanistan, of injuries suffered during a non-combat-related vehicle accident March 28 in North Kabul. Also killed was Sgt. Edmund W. McDonald.
Died: March 29, 2007
Southern California soldier dies in Afghanistan accident
The Associated Press
SAN JACINTO, Calif. � Agustin Gutierrez�s family didn�t know the Army specialist had planned to propose to his girlfriend of just nine months.
He brought Rebecca Collado, whom he met at a movie theater near Ft. Bragg, home for Christmas but didn�t tell anyone about his plans before shipping off to Afghanistan.
�I guess he was going to surprise us, like he always did,� said his sister, Cecilia Mendoza. �When he came home on leave, he�d only call one brother and tell him not to tell the rest of the family so he could surprise us.�
Gutierrez�s last surprise, however, was a tragic one. The 19-year-old mechanic died March 29 from injuries suffered a day earlier when the vehicle he was traveling in overturned near Kabul. He had been assigned to the 782nd Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, and had volunteered to be a gunner in a...