A U.S. soldier who worked as an operator on the Patriot missile system was found dead on Wednesday outside her home in South Korea, the country’s police confirmed.
Staff Sgt. Theresa Garris, 28, was found unresponsive by Chilgok county first responders at 3 a.m. in the parking lot of her apartment. Police believe Garris, who lived on the fourth floor of her building, fell to her death.
The death is under investigation, but foul play is not suspected, according to Stars and Stripes, which first reported on Garris’ death.
“Every member of the Dragon Brigade is a member of our family and losing one is hard on the entire unit,” brigade commander Col. Scott McLellan said in a statement from the Eighth Army. “Together we will move forward, remember the past, and take care of each other during this tough time.”
Garris served with the 2nd Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 35th Air Defense Artillery Brigade as a Patriot launching station enhanced operator and maintainer at Carroll, more than 100 miles south of Seoul.
Her awards include the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Korea Defense Service Medal, Army Superior Unit Award and Army Good Conduct Medal.
Zamone “Z” Perez is a reporter at Military Times. He previously worked at Foreign Policy and Ufahamu Africa. He is a graduate of Northwestern University, where he researched international ethics and atrocity prevention in his thesis. He can be found on Twitter @zamoneperez.
