Spc. Austin Dishmon, a soldier with the 3rd Infantry Division shown here in an undated family photo, died March 27, 2024 while deployed to Lithuania. The Army hasn’t released the circumstances of his death. The face of Dishmon's daughter has been blurred at the request of his wife. (Gregory Dishmon)
STUTTGART, Germany — The father of a 28-year-old Army specialist said Friday that he is still waiting for answers about the circumstances of his son’s death, which he said happened more than two weeks ago at a weapons range in Lithuania.
Spc. Austin Dishmon, a soldier with the Fort Stewart, Ga.-based 3rd Infantry Division, died March 27 while deployed to Europe on a mission to shore up NATO’s eastern flank.
The U.S. Army never announced his death, which is unusual for a fatality while deployed for duty.
Lt. Col. Matt Fontaine, 3rd Infantry Division spokesman, on Friday confirmed Dishmon’s death near Pabrade, Lithuania, following a query from Stars and Stripes. The cause of death is under investigation, he said.
Meanwhile, Dishmon’s father, Gregory, said he’s been told virtually nothing about what happened.
“They put my son’s friend and other soldiers in his unit on a gag order and they can’t speak to his wife about it,” Gregory Dishmon said Friday. “I just want to know what happened to my son.”
After the March 27 incident, Gregory Dishmon said he was informed by the Army that it happened on a gun range in Lithuania and that his son’s body was being taken to Germany to be embalmed before being returned to the United States.
“They said they can’t tell me anything and it would be a lengthy investigation, “he said.
Austin Dishmon’s body still hasn’t been returned home, his father added.
The Army specialist was married with a son, 5, and a daughter, 3. He transferred to the Army from the Marine Corps a couple of years ago, his father said.
Then-U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Austin Dishmon, most recently assigned to the Army’s 3rd Infantry Division and shown here with his father Gregory Dishmon in an undated family photo, died March 27, 2024, while deployed to Lithuania. Dishmon, 28, who was married with two children, transferred to the Army from the Marine Corps a couple of years ago. (Gregory Dishmon)
“He was a happy kid. He called me and his mom all the time and couldn’t wait to come home,” Gregory Dishmon said. “After deployments he would always come and see me.”
Austin Dishmon was assigned to the 3rd Infantry Division’s 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 8th Cavalry Regiment, which is slated to wrap up a nine-month deployment to Europe in May.
He was a cavalry scout who served with the 3rd Infantry Division for nearly two years, and was awarded the Army Good Conduct Medal and the National Defense Service Medal, the unit said.
“Our hearts mourn Spc. Dishmon, he was a cherished teammate with so much potential,” Col. Ethan J. Diven, commander of 2nd ABCT, 3rd ID, said in a statement. “We offer our deepest condolences to his family and our priority is supporting them and the soldiers in his unit who will never forget his important legacy of service.”
The unit is one of three rotational Army brigade combat teams operating in Europe with a focus on reassuring allies and deterring potential Russian aggression on NATO’s eastern flank. Together, they represent the bulk of an expanded rotational force on the Continent, part of which was put in place in the aftermath of Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
