Local GI a casualty or captive in Iraq

Second Michigan soldier is confirmed dead in weekend ambush that killed five, left three missing.

Joe Menard and Mark Hicks / The Detroit News

Loved ones of a Waterford Township man who may be among the soldiers missing following a deadly ambush in Iraq on Saturday are anxiously awaiting news of his fate.

Because she considers Army Pvt. Byron W. Fouty, "like family," Cathy Conger of Walled Lake says the 19-year-old's absence looms.

"He doesn't deserve this," said Conger, 49, whose son is a close friend and invited Fouty to live with them for more than a year in 2005. "I'm just really devastated. It hurts so much.

"I pray to God that he makes it out safely."

Fouty was among seven soldiers ambushed Saturday. The Department of Defense has identified three of the four killed, including Pfc. Daniel W. Courneya, 19, of Vermontville, Mich.; the DOD has not specified whether Fouty was the fourth killed soldier or among three feared captured by al-Qaida during the predawn ambush near Mahmoudiya, in a Sunni stronghold 20 miles south of Baghdad, Iraq.

The news came as some 4,000 U.S. forces intensified search efforts Tuesday and U.S. troops arrested 11 people -- including four wanted men -- and questioned 460 people in connection with the ambush.

In addition to Courneya, the Pentagon has confirmed the identities of two other soldiers killed Saturday: Sgt. 1st Class James D. Connell Jr., 40, of Lake City, Tenn.; and Pfc. Christopher E. Murphy, 21, of Lynchburg, Va. An Iraqi interpreter also was killed.

The men were members of the 4th Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment of the 10th Mountain Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team.

The other three identified missing Tuesday: Sgt. Anthony J. Schober, 23, of Reno, Nev.; Spc. Alex R. Jimenez, 25, of Lawrence, Mass.; Pfc. Joseph J. Anzack Jr., 20, of Torrance, Calif.

American aircraft have dropped leaflets seeking information about the missing soldiers. Trucks with loudspeakers roamed the area urging people to come forward with any information.

On Monday, an al-Qaida front group, the Islamic State of Iraq, warned the Americans in a Web statement to call off the hunt "if you want their safety."

The warning could indicate that the presence of about 4,000 U.S. and Iraqi troops in the thinly populated farming area 20 miles south of Baghdad is making it difficult for the captors to move the Americans to a secure location.

On his last MySpace entry, dated April 12, Fouty called his time in Iraq "a messed up year," mourned his grandmother's death from cancer in 2005, and lamented a comrade's suicide.

"This year has been coated with nothing but bad news, very little good news shining through," he wrote, listing his current mood as "aggravated."

He then mentioned anticipating a break for the holidays. But this, he wrote, was hindered by a sobering development: "Now I find we're extended until November. Joy."

Friends on his page offered reassuring words and pleaded for his safety.

A message left Sunday from "Sarah & Isaac [WE MISS YOU BYRON]" read: "i have soo many people prayin for you over here and everyones looking for you. we love you so so much"

Fouty lived with Conger for about 14 months before leaving for the service last summer.

Conger said the teen had had a troubled home life and his dad kicked him out, which is why he came to live with her and her son, Bryan, a friend for nearly a decade.

Fouty attended Walled Lake Central High School, where he played football and performed in plays, Conger said.

He left last year after learning he wasn't going to graduate on time, she said, and later earned a GED.

After Fouty joined the military, his father moved to Mississippi and his mother to Texas. To celebrate Christmas after completing boot camp, he returned to Conger's home in his uniform.

"He looked so much more mature," Conger said.

By that time, Fouty knew he would be deployed to Iraq.

"He was grown up about it and wasn't scared at all," Conger said. "He said he was ready for it."

Courage also characterized Daniel Courneya, who relatives said decided on a military career while still in junior high.

The former Vermontville resident often said how he admired their work, and wanted to perform similar duties "to make a difference," said his grandmother, Martha Petuck. "He wanted to make things better in the world, for everyone. He was always concerned about people."

He enlisted in the Army weeks before graduating from Maple Valley Junior/Senior High School in 2005.

Courneya was deployed to Iraq in August, his grandmother said. His stepfather, Army Spc. David Thompson, had also been serving there and was scheduled to return last weekend.

Born Aug. 30, 1987, in Fresno, Calif., Courneya moved with his mother to Michigan at age 10, later settling in Vermontville, some 30 miles southwest of Lansing.

A sports aficionado who was shooting basketball layups "like you wouldn't believe" at age two, Martha Petuck said, Courneya also played soccer and ran track while in high school.

By fifth grade, he was playing clarinet with the Maplewood Elementary School band.

At Maple Valley Junior/Senior High School he was named first chair, and performed with the band at a festival during the presidential inauguration in Washington, D.C., in January 2005.

The teen also was a fixture at the band's various fundraisers, where he was "the first one there, the last to leave," said band director Dennis Vanderhoef. "He was always helping."

Over the holidays, during a one-month leave from his Iraqi tour, he married his longtime girlfriend, Jennifer, in a civil ceremony.

The couple had planned to wed in a larger ceremony after Courneya completed his duties, his grandmother said.

"I always called him 'my bright eyes,'" Martha Petuck said. "He was my hero."

Services are pending.

Detroit News wire services contributed to this report. Reach Joe Menard at (313) 222-2296 or jmenard@detnews.com.