Pfc. Arturo Alejandro Gomez was an infantryman from Provo, Utah, assigned to the 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment of the 11th Airborne Division. (U.S. Army)
A Fort Wainwright soldier was killed Monday by a woman believed to be driving drunk after she crashed her vehicle into the security gate at the base and struck him, local law enforcement said.
Pfc. Arturo Alejandro Gomez, 29, was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash at the Gaffney Road entrance to Fort Wainwright, according to the Fairbanks Police Department, the city in Alaska where the base is located. Fort Wainwright is the Army’s northernmost major installation.
Gomez was an infantryman from Provo, Utah, assigned to the 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment of the 11th Airborne Division, nicknamed “Arctic Wolves.” He enlisted in the Army a year ago and trained at Fort Moore, Ga., before reporting to Alaska in February.
“Pfc. Gomez showed great promise in his short time in the Arctic Wolves,” said Col. Christopher Brawley, commander of the division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team. “The loss of Pfc. Gomez has had a devastating impact on the unit. We are doing our best to support his family, friends and fellow soldiers in the aftermath of this tragic and senseless incident.”
When police arrived at the scene at about 5:10 p.m., they found several military personnel pointing rifles at a Toyota 4-Runner that had significant damage with its driver’s side against a traffic barricade.
Gomez’s body lay on the ground behind the vehicle.
Police observed the vehicle’s driver, Brianna Lapp, 31, had poor mobility, slurred speech, and a strong odor of alcohol. A breath sample taken at about 7:30 p.m. measured a blood alcohol content of .299, more than 3½ times above the legal limit to drive, according to police.
Lapp told police that she did not remember hitting anyone.
However, witnesses told police that Lapp was driving at a high rate of speed, going over medians and through ditches. She struck two vehicles and a traffic control sign before driving toward a construction site near Fort Wainwright’s visitor center. There, she drove through a portion of a fence, crossed into road and struck Gomez at his post at the gate.
Gomez attempted to get out of the way, police said.
Lapp was arraigned Tuesday on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol, manslaughter and murder in the second degree. Her bail was set at $1 million. Police did not believe she had any affiliation with the base.
“The death of this soldier was senseless and preventable,” Fairbanks Police Chief Ron Dupee said in a statement. “I find it incredibly tragic that this young man who joined the military service was senselessly run down right here in the country that he signed up to protect. His life was taken away, and this deeply impacts the entire Fort Wainwright and Fairbanks community.”
The sign at the main gate of the Army’s Fort Wainwright near Fairbanks, Alaska. (U.S. Army)
