Soldier Found Murdered in His Car Near Army Barracks After Returning from Iraq ‘Without a Scratch’

Tragic Circumstances

Spe­cial­ist Jacob Ash­ton, a 21-year-old sol­dier, was found dead ear­li­er this month in the Fort Drum bar­racks in upstate New York. Accord­ing to his fam­i­ly, inves­ti­ga­tors deter­mined that the cause of death was blunt force trauma.

Ashton’s Promising Beginnings

Ash­ton had grad­u­at­ed from Per­ry High School in Ohio, where he was known for his involve­ment in sports and com­mu­ni­ty ser­vice. His for­mer coun­selor, Lisa Gigante, described him as one of the most polite stu­dents she had ever encoun­tered, with a big impact on the local chil­dren he vol­un­teered with.

A Shocking Twist

Ash­ton’s sis­ter, Alaina Ustup­s­ki, expressed the fam­i­ly’s shock and dis­be­lief upon learn­ing the news. “He went to Iraq and did­n’t have a scratch on him, and then comes home, thinks he is safe, and appar­ent­ly isn’t,” she said.

The Suspect and Legal Proceedings

Ash­ton’s room­mate, Spe­cial­ist Riley Bir­bilas, has been charged with pre­med­i­tat­ed mur­der and obstruc­tion of jus­tice in con­nec­tion with Ash­ton’s death. Bir­bilas will face a court mar­tial, which could result in a life sen­tence or the death penal­ty, accord­ing to the fam­i­ly’s hopes.

Honoring Ashton’s Memory

Col. Antho­ny Gore, the 2nd BCT Com­man­der, expressed pro­found sor­row for the loss of Ash­ton and vowed that the entire Com­man­do fam­i­ly would sup­port Ash­ton’s fam­i­ly dur­ing this dif­fi­cult time. “Let us live in a man­ner wor­thy of hon­or­ing Jacob’s life and ser­vice,” he said.