Three young US Marines were found dead inside a parked car at a gas station in North Carolina on Sunday morning, July 23, authorities confirmed.
Results from autopsies conducted on Wednesday by the North Carolina Medical Examiner’s office established carbon monoxide poisoning as the cause of the deaths. The Pender County Sheriff’s Department’s Sergeant Chester Ward reported that there was no indication of foul play or drugs present in the vehicle. However, the department has not explicitly stated that the deaths were accidental.
The grim discovery was made when deputies, responding to a missing person report, located the Marines deceased in a sedan parked at a Speedway convenience store in Hampstead, located an hour away from Camp Lejeune. The bodies were found at approximately 9 a.m.
The deceased Marines, all lance corporals, were identified as Merax Dockery, 23, from Pottawatomie, Oklahoma; Tanner Kaltenberg, 19, from Madison, Wisconsin; and Ivan Garcia, 23, from Naples, Florida.
Brigadier General Michael McWilliams, the commanding officer of the Second Marine Logistics Group, expressed condolences to the families, friends, and fellow Marines of the deceased. He assured them of the Marine Corps’ commitment to provide necessary assistance during this time of loss.
The Marine Corps is presently investigating the circumstances leading to these deaths, with more details yet to be released.
