BAUMHOLDER, Germany — Sgt. Bruce E. Horner, an MP based out of Baumholder, was killed by small-arms fire Friday while operating on the streets of Baghdad with soldiers from the 127th Military Police Company, the Pentagon announced late Monday.

Horner’s unit was among those searching for three soldiers seized last month in an ambush outside Baghdad, Horner’s father told his hometown newspaper, The Morning Journal of Lorain, Ohio.

Horner, an 18-year Army veteran, was assigned to the 127th MP Company, 709th MP Battalion, 18th MP Brigade, 21st Theater Support Command, at Fliegerhorst Kaserne in Germany. The 127th has soldiers stationed at numerous bases around Germany, including Baumholder.

A memorial service will be held in Baumholder on Thursday.

Horner lived in Kaiserslautern with his wife, Erin, according to his mother, Betty. Before moving to Germany, the Horners lived in Newport News, Va. Betty Horner said her son planned to retire from the Army after he served 20 years.

Horner was stationed at a power plant in Iskandariyah, Iraq, according to family members. After graduating from high school in Ohio, Horner became an emergency medical technician. He then joined the Army and eventually moved to Virginia.

In The Washington Post, Horner was described by friends as an extroverted, fun-loving man who never hesitated to invite new acquaintances to his church in Newport News.

“He was a wonderful guy,” Tammy Willis, the wife of Horner’s pastor, told the Post. Horner sang and worked with youth groups at Olivet Christian Church.

Horner and his wife lived in the Newport News area for about six years, the Daily Press of Newport News reported.