A 24-year-old Marine from Thornton was killed by a roadside bomb Thursday while on a combat foot patrol in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, the U.S. Marines Corps said today.
He was identified as Corporal Larry D. Harris, Jr., a mortarman assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force.
Harris joined the Marines in May 2006. Before being deployed to Afghanistan, he served in Iraq.
Among his service awards were the Purple Heart, the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, the Combat Action Ribbon, the National Defense Service Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, the Iraq Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Medal and the sea Service Deployment Ribbon.
“The Marines and sailors of the 1st Marine Division mourn the loss of Corporal Harris. Our heartfelt condolences go out to his family,” the Marine Corp. said in a statement from Camp Pendleton, Calif.
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com
