FORT BRAGG, N.C. — Friends, family members, and fellow soldiers are mourning the loss of a young U.S. Army paratrooper who was killed Friday afternoon in a motorcycle crash near Fort Bragg.
Army officials and local police identified the soldier as Spc. Aaron Isaiah Aguero, 20, who was assigned to the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment at Fort Bragg. Aguero, originally from Tennessee, was pronounced dead at the scene following a multi-vehicle collision along Yadkin Road in Fayetteville.
According to a news release from the Fayetteville Police Department, the crash occurred shortly before 1 p.m. near the intersection of Yadkin Road and Cimarron Drive. Investigators said Aguero had been released earlier in the day for holiday leave and was riding a Kawasaki motorcycle traveling from Fort Bragg toward Skibo Road.
Preliminary information indicates the motorcycle attempted to pass traffic using a turn lane and entered the oncoming lane, striking the rear of a Ford pickup truck that was making a left turn into the former Ponderosa neighborhood. Aguero was ejected from the motorcycle and struck by an oncoming vehicle. He was pronounced deceased at the scene. The crash remains under investigation, and police have not released additional details.
Friends of Aguero established a roadside memorial near the crash site along Yadkin Road, where soldiers and civilians alike have stopped to pay their respects.
Paige Muniz, a close friend, said Aguero was deeply loved by those around him and had a passion for music. She described him as someone who enjoyed playing guitar for others and dreamed of becoming famous one day. Aguero is survived by his parents, siblings, girlfriend, and friends.
Aguero’s death marks the second fatal motorcycle crash involving a Fort Bragg soldier in less than a month. Four days before Thanksgiving, Jackson “Jack” Corum, 21, assigned to the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, was killed when his motorcycle crashed at the traffic circle at Person Street and Old Wilmington Road in Fayetteville. The 82nd Airborne Division is one of Fort Bragg’s primary combat units and home to thousands of paratroopers stationed on the installation.
Funeral arrangements for Aguero have not yet been announced.
As the Fort Bragg community continues to grapple with the loss, friends say Aguero’s legacy lives on through his unit, his family, and those whose lives he touched during his short time in uniform.
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