UPDATE: Son of soldier killed in battle says father was weeks from coming home, retiring

A U.S. service member killed in Afghanistan on Monday was from Taylor County.

Command Sergeant Major Tim Bolyard, of Thornton, W.Va., was killed in what officials called an insider attack - an attack carried out by a member of the Afghan national police.

The NATO-led Resolute Support mission said Bolyard was killed and another service member was wounded during the attack in eastern Afghanistan. The wounded service member is in stable condition, according to the release.

"The sacrifice of our service member, who volunteered for a mission to Afghanistan to protect his country, is a tragic loss for all who knew and all who will now never know him,” said Resolute Support and U.S. Forces – Afghanistan Commanding General Scott Miller. "Our duty now is to honor him, care for his family and continue our mission.”

Bolyard's son, Preston, told 5 News he has family living in Thornton, W.Va. in Taylor County. He said the family now lives in Colorado, where he has spent his whole life.

Preston said his 42-year-old father was less than two months from coming home and retiring.

"The news doesn’t feel real whatsoever," he wrote on Facebook. "He was an amazing man. A great father, husband, and friend to many people. My dad is definitely my hero. Words cannot explain the love I have for this man."

Preston said his dad went to school in Grafton, but lived with his parents in Thornton.

The statement from the Resolute Support mission said Bolyard was the sixth American killed in Afghanistan this year. The next day, another service member died in a separate "non-combat related incident" in eastern Afghanistan, according to the NATO release.

The attack was carried out by a member of the Afghan national police, the AP reported Tuesday citing Lt. Col. Martin O’Donnell.

O’Donnell told the AP the attacker was an Afghan policeman who ran away but was later apprehended by Afghans.

The 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade released a statement late Tuesday night confirming the news of Bolyard's passing. He was the highest-ranking, non-commissioned officer in his unit, according to Military.com.

"Command Sgt. Maj. Bolyard was an outstanding and beloved leader whose service and sacrifice will never be forgotten," said Brig. Gen. Scott Jackson. "We are heartbroken for his Family and will do everything in our power to help them through this tragedy. He will live on in our memories and in the hundreds of Soldiers he led and cared for throughout his exceptional career."

The Pentagon has identified the soldier killed in Afghanistan Monday in what U.S. officials said was an attack by a member of the Afghan national police.

He was identified as Army Command Sgt. Maj. Timothy A. Bolyard, age 42, from Thornton, West Virginia.

The Pentagon says Bolyard died of wounds sustained from small arms fire in Logar Province in eastern Afghanistan. The incident is under investigation.

Bolyard was assigned to 3rd Squadron, 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade, based at Fort Benning, Georgia.

__

2 p.m.

An attack on U.S. troops in Afghanistan that killed one American was carried out by a member of the Afghan national police now in Afghan government custody, a U.S. official said Tuesday. It was the second so-called insider attack there this summer.

Lt. Col. Martin O'Donnell, a spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition in Kabul, said in a telephone interview Tuesday that the American, whose name has not yet been made public, was killed in eastern Afghanistan by an Afghan policeman. Another U.S. service member was wounded; O'Donnell said that person's wounds are not life threatening.

(Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)