Three US Marines found dead outside their base

The bodies were discovered in a car at a convenience store near North Carolina’s Camp Lejeune

Three US Marine Corps lance corporals have been found dead in a car parked outside a convenience store near the Camp Lejeune military base in North Carolina.

The bodies were discovered on Sunday morning at a Speedway filling station in Hampstead, North Carolina, the Pender County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement on Tuesday. Deputies encountered their vehicle while investigating a report of a missing person.

Neither law enforcement officials nor the Marine Corps disclosed any information on a possible cause of death. The case is reportedly being investigated by the Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.

The deceased Marines were identified as 19-year-old Tanner Kaltenberg of Madison, Wisconsin; Merax Dockery, 23, from Pottawatomie, Oklahoma; and Naples, Florida native Ivan Garcia, also 23. All three lance corporals were motor vehicle operators, driving various tactical vehicles for the 2nd Marine Logistics Group at Camp Lejeune.

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Their regimental commander, Brigadier General Michael McWilliams, issued a statement extending condolences to family members and friends of the deceased Marines. “Our focus is on providing the necessary resources and support to those impacted by their tragic loss as they navigate this extremely difficult time,” he said.

Foul play reportedly isn’t suspected in the case. “There does not appear to have ever been any threat to members of the community,” the Sheriff’s Office said.

The incident comes less than one month after four people, including three Marines from Southern California’s Camp Pendleton, were killed in a fiery one-vehicle car crash in Los Angeles County.

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