Both Minnesotans died in separate vehicle crashes, the Department of Defense said.
KSTP.com -- MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - A 27-year-old soldier from Brooklyn Park is the latest Minnesotan to die in Iraq, the Department of Defense announced Monday. Officials also released the cause of death of another Minnesota soldier, whose death was made public last week.
Both Minnesotans died in separate vehicle crashes, the Department of Defense said.
Sgt. 1st Class Mickey E. Zaun, 27, of Brooklyn Park, died Friday in Mosul, Iraq, from injuries sustained in a collision between two armored vehicles. Zaun was assigned to the U.S. Army Special Operations Command in Fort Bragg, N.C.
Zaun's former mother-in-law said he loved serving in the military.
"We're going to love and miss that kid forever," Julie Eberhardt, of Jamestown, N.D., told the Star Tribune. Zaun used to be married to Eberhardt's daughter, Melissa Benoit, an Army paratrooper stationed in Germany. "We have great respect for him."