Trey (Benjamin B.) Bartlett Jr. dies 'of wounds suffered from a rocket propelled grenade'

A Fort Bliss cavalry soldier whose job was to direct artillery fire died Sunday in northwest Iraq of wounds he suffered in a rocket-propelled grenade attack, the Department of Defense announced Tuesday.

Spc. Benjamin B. Bartlett Jr., 25, of Manchester, Ga., was with the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, operating out of Mosul, Iraq, where he was killed. Bartlett was a fire-support specialist, who joined the Army in Atlanta on Nov. 22, 2005. Before coming to Fort Bliss, he was stationed at Fort Sill, Okla.

He was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart, and was promoted to specialist.

Bartlett had no family in El Paso, Fort Bliss officials said.

About 4,000 4-1 Cavalry soldiers went to Iraq late last year. Most were assigned to Mosul and are operating in Nineveh Province, but one regiment was sent to Baghdad. Bartlett is the 20th 4-1 cavalry soldier to die in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

From the El Paso Times