A soldier from Whitefish stationed at Fort Polk was killed in an attack at the Louisiana base last weekend, his mother said.
An Ohio civilian has been charged with murder and attempted murder after one person was killed and another injured on the base on Saturday. Marcus Carey, 25, is being prosecuted in federal court and not military court because he is a civilian.
The FBI is investigating the attack. FBI spokeswoman Sheila Thorne declined Thursday to release the names of the victims or any details surrounding the attacks.
But the mother of Byron Whitcomb said she was visited by military representatives who told her of her son’s killing at the Army base. Billie Eisinger declined to provide details of the circumstances surrounding her son’s death, saying Whitcomb’s wife had asked her not to.
Eisinger said her son was born in Missoula and grew up and attended school in Whitefish. He was a sports standout in high school, playing football, baseball and hockey.
Whitcomb joined the Army on June 23, 2009. He and his wife have a 2-year-old daughter.
A funeral will be held at Fort Polk; another funeral is pending in the Flathead Valley.