Keith Maupin
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United States Army Sergeant Keith Matthew "Matt" Maupin (born July 13,1983) was captured by Iraqi insurgents on April 9, 2004 while serving in the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq after his convoy came under attack by rocket-propelled grenades and small arms fire near Baghdad, Iraq. On June 28, 2004, Al-Jazeera reported he was executed by his captors who shot him in the head. On June 30, 2004, an Army spokesman said the video showing Maupin's alleged death was "totally inconclusive." [1] (http://www.enquirer.com/editions/2004/08/10/loc_loc1amaupin.html)
Biography
Born on July 13, 1983 in Batavia, Ohio, Maupin was a 3.5 grade-point-average student and football player at Glen Este High School in Union Township, Clermont County, Ohio. He graduated in 2001 and joined the U.S. Army Reserve and was assigned to the Army Reserve's 724th Transportation Company, from Bartonville, Illinois.
On April 9, 2004, Maupin's fuel convoy came under attack near the Baghdad International Airport. He was reported as disappeared (technically missing in action) along with Sgt. Elmer Krause and a small group of private military contractors from Kellogg, Brown and Root, which included hostage Thomas Hamill, who was later rescued.
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On April 16, 2004, the face of Maupin was broadcast on a videotape by the Arabic-language TV network Al-Jazeera. The tape, reportedly delivered to the U.S. embassy in Doha, Qatar, raised hopes that Maupin was still alive. In the video, the soldier identified himself as "Private First Class Keith Matthew Maupin", a standard procedure followed by prisoners of war which protect their rights under the Third Geneva Convention. On June 28, 2004, Al-Jazeera reported that Maupin was executed by a group identifying itself as the Persistent Power Against the Enemies of God and the Prophet. The method of execution in the alleged report was a gunshot to the head.
Maupin has been promoted twice since he was declared missing in action, first from Private First Class to Specialist, and then to Sergeant. As of April 6, 2005 he is the only U.S. soldier unaccounted for in Iraq. [2] (http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050406/NEWS01/504060395/1056/news01)
External links
- Operation Iraq Freedom POW/MIA: Keith Matthew Maupin (http://www.operationiraqfreedompowmia.com/maupin_k_pow.htm)
References
- Aljazeera. Purported Iraqi group executes US soldier (http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/4E4D8BDF-ED99-40F1-8C9C-E98BAFC543C6.htm). Doha, Qatar: Aljazeera. June 29, 2004.
- CNN. Kidnapped U.S. contractor found safe (http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/meast/05/02/iraq.main/index.html). Atlanta, Georgia: Cable News Network. May 2, 2004.
- WCPO.com Matt Maupin's Parents Talk About Their Ordeal (http://www.wcpo.com/news/2004/local/11/09/maupin_late.html). November 9, 2004.