PHOENIX – A Navy Seal killed in Iraq has ties to Northeast Florida.
The mother of Charlie Keating IV, 31, lives in Ponte Vedra Beach. She and the rest of her family are on their way to Dover Air Force Base, where they will receive the fallen Seal's body Friday morning.
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As family and friends prepare to lay the young man to rest, new video has emerged that appears to show the firefight that killed him.
A senior U.S. military officer said Keating was part of a quick reaction force that moved in to help American military advisers who came under ISIS attack.
The officer said Keating was shot during a gun battle that involved more than 100 enemy fighters.
Keating, the grandson of the late Arizona financier involved in a savings and loan scandal, is the third American serviceman killed in combat against ISIS.
He lived in Arizona with his wife and her family and was a graduate of Phoenix's Arcadia High School.
Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey ordered all state flags be lowered to half-staff from sunrise to sunset Wednesday in honor of Keating, a Navy Seal based out of Coronado, California.
Rep. Ander Crenshaw, a member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, issued the following statement on the Keating's death:
“A decorated combat veteran, U.S. Navy Seal Charles Keating IV gave up his life while heroically working to shield others from ISIS terrorists. His death is a tragic reminder of the constant risks to our men and women in uniform and the need to stay vigilant and strong on the road ahead. Our hearts and prayers go out to his family, friends, and loved ones.”
Funeral services are planned for May 12.
Keating's grandfather, Charles H. Keating Jr., who died in 2014 at age 90, was the notorious financier who served prison time for his role in the costliest savings and loan failure of the 1980s.