Army Staff Sgt. Arthur S. Mastrapa

Died June 16, 2004 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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35, of Apopka, Fla.; assigned to the 351 Military Police Company, 95th Military Police Battalion, 16th Military Police Brigade, Army Reserve, Ocala, Fla.; killed June 16 during a mortar attack when mortar rounds hit his camp in Balad, Iraq.

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Fla. soldier killed in Iraq days before planned homecoming

Associated Press

APOPKA, Fla. — A soldier from central Florida was killed in Iraq, just days before he planned to come home and surprise his dad for Father’s Day, officials and family members said Friday. A Jacksonville soldier also was wounded in the attack.

Sgt. Arthur Stacey Mastrapa, 35, of Apopka, died Wednesday in Balad, Iraq, when mortar rounds hit his camp, according to the Department of Defense. Two other soldiers also died in the attack.

Spc. Christopher Powell, 24, of Jacksonville, was among the 25 people wounded in the attack about 50 miles north of Baghdad.

Mastrapa was scheduled to return to the U.S. on Friday with his unit, the Army Reserve’s 351st Military Police Company, based in Ocala.

Mastrapa had kept his return a secret, hoping to surprise his family.

“He wanted to surprise me for Father’s Day,” said his father Arthur Mastrapa, 61. “He was a joy to have around — a very good, happy person.”

Mastrapa leaves behind a wife, Jennifer, daughter Marisa, 8, and 20-month-old son, Reece.

He joined the Army shortly after graduating from Forest Lake Academy and served as a military policeman in Alabama and Germany.

After the service, he worked as a postal carrier in Altamonte Springs and joined the Army Reserves.

“He liked being in the military,” said his brother, Mark Mastrapa. “He really loved serving his country.”

The 351st left in February 2003 during the buildup to the war in Iraq. Their return home was planned and delayed twice before. A homecoming parade for the soldiers of the 351st was planned for next Thursday in Ocala.