DOD Identifies Three Operation Inherent Resolve Casualties
Jan. 18, 2019

The Department of Defense announced today the deaths of one soldier, one sailor and one DOD civilian who were supporting Operation Inherent Resolve.

The deceased are:

Army Chief Warrant Officer 2 Jonathan R. Farmer, 37, of Boynton Beach, Florida. Farmer was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Campbell, Kentucky.

Navy Chief Cryptologic Technician (Interpretive) Shannon M. Kent, 35, of upstate New York. Kent was assigned to Cryptologic Warfare Activity 66, based at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland.

DOD civilian Scott A. Wirtz of St. Louis, Missouri. Wirtz was assigned to the Defense Intelligence Agency as an operations support specialist.

Farmer, Kent and Wirtz died Jan. 16, 2019, in Manbij, Syria, as a result of wounds sustained from a suicide improvised explosive device.

The incident is under investigation.

For more information regarding Chief Warrant Officer 2 Jonathan R. Farmer, media may contact Lt. Col. Loren Bymer, U.S. Army Special Operations Command Public Affairs, at 910-432-3383 or [email protected].

For more information regarding Chief Cryptologic Technician (Interpretive) Shannon M. Kent, media may contact U.S. Fleet Cyber Command/U.S. 10th Fleet Public Affairs Office at 443-634-7763.

For more information regarding DOD civilian Scott A. Wirtz, media may contact the Defense Intelligence Agency Public Affairs Office at [email protected].