Marine corps soldier who committed suicide in N.S. had twice served in Iraq

A young marine corps soldier who shot himself outside his mother's llama farm in Nova Scotia last week had completed two tours in Iraq, the U.S. military confirmed Saturday. The grim news came as military officials scrambled to respond to reports that suicides within the U.S. army reached record levels last year. Lance Cpl. Timothy G. Scott was wanted by military police for abandoning his unit in North Carolina when he slipped into New Brunswick from Maine last Wednesday, then made his way to Nova Scotia. The 22-year-old rifleman originally from Alexandria, Va., killed himself Thursday with a 9-mm handgun after he threatened his 59-year-old mother outside her home in Upper Branch, near Bridgewater. The soldier was stationed at U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, where he was part of the 1,400-member headquarters and support battalion. The large base maintains combat-ready marine and naval units for deployment around the world. A base spokeswoman confirmed Scott served in Iraq from January to August 2007, and then from April to October in 2008. Having joined the Marine Corps in November 2005, he was later awarded two Sea Service Deployment Ribbons, an Iraqi Campaign Medal, a Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, and the National Defence Service Medal. He is thought to have left his unit sometime around Feb. 10, crossing the Canada-U.S. border at Woodstock, N.B., early the next day. U.S. authorities have identified Scott as a suspect in the theft of a firearm from his father's residence in Norfolk, Va., around Feb. 10. Police confirmed the handgun was the weapon Scott used to kill himself. The RCMP say officers at the scene had aimed their guns at Scott and told him to drop his weapon, but he walked out of sight and shot himself once, about 20 metres from the farmhouse. Scott's mother, who is believed to have moved to Nova Scotia from the States about three years ago, was not harmed. The Canada Border Services Agency wouldn't provide any details on how a man wanted by both the military and U.S. police managed to get into Canada carrying a stolen gun. Last week, the U.S. secretary of the army, Pete Geren, said he wanted all 1.2 million U.S. soldiers retrained in suicide prevention by August. In 2008, the suicide rate among active members of the U.S. army eclipsed the comparable civilian rate for the first time. As a result, the U.S. veterans affairs committee has asked Defense Secretary Robert Gates to convene a joint oversight committee to address military suicides. The army's 2008 suicide toll - 128 confirmed cases and 15 pending investigation - marks an all-time high and the fourth consecutive year of increases. Twenty of every 100,000 soldiers killed themselves last year, doubling the army's figures from just five years ago. U.S. army officials have said they believe the suicide rate has jumped because tours of duty have jumped to 15 months. Last month, the number of U.S. soldier suicides reached 24, well ahead of the number of combat deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan, recorded at 16.