Soldier with Reno ties killed in Iraq

ALBUQUERQUE"A 32-year-old soldier who lived in Reno before his reenlistment in the spring was killed Thursday during combat operations in Iraq.

The U.S. Defense Department announced Friday that Cpt. Thomas J. Casey of Albuquerque died Thursday in Sadiyah of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit with small arms fire. Also killed in the attack was Army Maj. Andrew J. Olmsted, 37, of Colorado Springs, Colo.

The Defense Department says both soldiers were assigned to the Military Transition Team, 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division of Fort Riley, Kan.

A spokeswoman at Fort Riley said she had no other details.

Casey's family members told Albuquerque television station KOB-TV that he will be remembered as a wonderful husband and father and as a hero.

Casey, a graduate of the Albuquerque Academy and the University of New Mexico, had retired from the Army three years ago after his first tour in Iraq. His family said he re-enlisted last spring and was deployed to Iraq in the summer.

Family members said Casey, his wife and children lived most recently in Reno, Nevada.