Matt Maupin

Keith Matthew "Matt" Maupin (July 13, 1983 – 2004) was a United States Army soldier captured by Iraqi insurgents on April 9, 2004, while serving in the Iraq War, after his convoy came under attack by rocket-propelled grenades and small arms fire near Baghdad, Iraq, in an incident which came to be known as the 2004 Iraq KBR convoy ambush. At the time of his capture, he was a Private First Class (PFC), and was promoted in absentia.

On June 28, 2004, the Arabic-language television network Al Jazeera aired a low-quality video purportedly depicting Maupin's execution. On June 30, 2004, a U.S. Army spokesman said the video was "totally inconclusive."

His body was found in late March 2008, but confirmation was not made until March 30, 2008, in Iraq.

Early life and education
Born on July 13, 1983 in Batavia, Ohio, Maupin was a graduate of Glen Este High School in Union Township, Clermont County, Ohio. After graduation, he enrolled at the University of Cincinnati and pursued studies in an aerospace engineering program under a scholarship program, but later switched to nutritional science. In 2002, he enlisted in the United States Army Reserve and was stationed with the 705th Transportation Company based in Dayton, Ohio.

Basic training and deployment


Maupin began basic training at Fort Jackson, South Carolina and continued on to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri for training as a Motor Transport Operator (88M). By the time he had completed training in the spring of 2003, the 705th Transportation Company had deployed to Iraq and Maupin was therefore assigned to the 643rd Area Support Group in Whitehall, Ohio.

In November 2003, Maupin was transferred to the recently mobilized 724th Transportation Company based in Bartonville, Illinois. Maupin and the 724th Transportation Company arrived in Kuwait on February 20, 2004, and on March 5, proceeded to Logistics Support Area Anaconda, Iraq, with the 7th Transportation Battalion, 172nd Corps Support Group, 13th Corps Support Command, to begin missions delivering fuel to various coalition installations.

Insurgent ambush and capture
On April 9, 2004, Maupin's fuel convoy came under attack near the Baghdad International Airport. In what was described as a 5 mi-long ambush, the 26-vehicle serial was pummeled by gunfire, mortar rounds and RPGs, disabling many of the civilian fuel tankers and Army vehicles.

After the remnants of the convoy reached safe ground it was learned that around ten soldiers and civilian KBR, Inc contractors were wounded, while one soldier, Specialist Gregory Goodrich, and a civilian driver had been killed in the battle. PFC Maupin was among the nine people unaccounted for – seven civilians and two soldiers. One of the missing civilian drivers, Thomas Hamill, had been taken hostage during the ambush and escaped his captors on May 2, 2004. The bodies of five other civilians and the second soldier were subsequently recovered; all are thought to have been killed in the ambush. Civilian driver Timothy Bell remains missing and is presumed dead.

On April 16, 2004, Maupin appeared on a videotape that was broadcast by the Arabic-language television network, Al Jazeera. The tape, reportedly delivered to the U.S. Embassy in Doha, Qatar, raised hopes that Maupin was still alive. In the video, the soldier identified himself as "Private First Class Keith Matthew Maupin", a standard procedure followed by prisoners of war that protects their rights under the Third Geneva Convention.

On June 28, 2004, Al Jazeera reported that Maupin was killed by a group identifying itself as The Persistent Power Against the Enemies of God and the Prophet. The method of killing in the video was a gunshot to the head. The U.S. Army deemed the tape inconclusive, because it is unclear whether the man was Maupin.

Operation Trojan Honor - search for Maupin
On March 30, 2008, Maupin's father told local newsmedia that the remains of his son had been found. He states that an Army general had told him that DNA was used to identify the remains.

According to an Army statement, Maupin's remains "were recovered northwest of Baghdad on March 20, by soldiers from 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry, based out of Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, attached to 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment." The unit called the recovery effort "Operation Trojan Honor", after the mascot of Maupin's high school, Glen Este. A tip from an Iraqi citizen led to the recovery of Maupin's remains. Two Iraqis who were reportedly involved in Maupin's capture and death have been tried for other crimes and sentenced to death by Iraqi courts. The Iraqi Court of Cassation sent the cases back to the trial court for administrative errors. The re-trial for the two Iraqis was expected to take place in 2010.

Promotions
Maupin was promoted three times after being declared missing in action, resulting in the rank of Staff Sergeant (SSG).

Memorials
A memorial was held in Cincinnati, Ohio on April 27, 2008, at Great American Ball Park. Maupin was buried at Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Cincinnati, Ohio on April 27, 2008, while surrounded by a group of close family and friends. I-275 in Clermont County was renamed "Staff Sergeant Matt Maupin Veterans Memorial Highway" in his honor.

Matt Maupin Welcome Pavilion
The Clermont County community, friends of Maupin's family, and the Clermont High School crew team raised funds and received donations to build a memorial pavilion (Matt Maupin Welcome Pavilion) in his honor at the finish line of the rowing race course on Harsha Lake Beach at East Fork State Park in Bethel, Ohio. The groundbreaking ceremony took place on May 7, 2006 and was completed on March 15, 2008.