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.
Autopsies performed on Wednesday by the North Carolina Medical Examiner’s office showed that the three died of carbon monoxide poisoning. Sergeant Chester Ward of the Pender County Sheriff’s Department said there were no indications of foul play or drugs in the vehicle but the Sheriff’s Department did not make clear that the deaths were accidental.
The discovery was made when deputies responded to a missing person’s report and found the deceased men in a four-door sedan parked outside a Speedway convenience store in Hampstead, about an hour’s drive from Camp Lejeune. The bodies were found around 9 a.m. on Sunday.
The names of the Marines have been released: Merax Dockery, 23, from Pottawatomie, Oklahoma; Tanner Kaltenberg, 19, from Madison, Wisconsin; and Ivan Garcia, 23, from Naples, Florida. All three held the rank of lance corporal.
Brigadier General Michael McWilliams, the commanding officer of the Second Marine Logistics Group, expressed his condolences to the families, friends, and colleagues of the deceased Marines. He assured them that the Marine Corps is providing necessary resources and support during this difficult time.
The Marine Corps is investigating the circumstances of the deaths, but no further details have been disclosed yet.