Double amputee Afghanistan Veteran Derek McConnell passed away

Parsippany soldier, 23, who lost his legs in Afghanistan found dead in his bed
By Brendan Kuty
NJ.com
March 19, 2013

He and Dressler won an online contest that promised them an $80,000 wedding in December.

PARSIPPANY — Derek McConnell, a 23-year-old Army sergeant who lost his legs in Afghanistan, was found dead in his bed Monday morning.

The cause of death hasn't been been determined, his mother, Siobhan McConnell, told NJ.com in a text message.

McConnell enlisted in the military in 2009. He was deployed in 2011, and in July of that year, he lost both his legs, fractured his skull and right arm, and suffered severe blast wounds after getting hit by two improvised explosive devices while on patrol in Kandahar, Afghanistan.
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