Army Reserve soldier from Tampa dies in Israel, Department of Defense says

A U.S. Army Reserve soldier from Tampa died in Jerusalem on Monday, officials say.

The Department of Defense said in a news release Thursday that Lt. Col. Orlando Bandeira, 54, died “as a result of a non-combat related incident.” According to Stars and Stripes, Bandeira was found “unresponsive in his residence.”

The incident is under investigation, the Department of Defense said in the statement.

According to U.S. Army records, Bandeira was a United States security coordinator at the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem. He was assigned to the 3rd Brigade, 94th Training Division in Indianapolis, according to the Department of Defense. Bandeira served time in the reserves at U.S. Central Command in Tampa.

Bandeira had been in the Army for almost 27 years. He enlisted in the Army National Guard in March 1997 and joined the Army Reserves in October 2019, according to U.S. Army records.

A week ago, Bandeira shared on his LinkedIn page that he began a new role as the deputy chief of operations at the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem.

In a post on Facebook, Justin Belill said Bandeira was his roommate in Tampa for almost seven years.

“Today I lost my best friend, LTC Orlando Bandeira,” Belill wrote in the post. “He deployed to Israel and became an angel to grace heaven with his kindness, compassion, and love.

“He was a Soldier; brave, true to his word, and gave 100% to his friends, family, and country. He died in honor of defending our great nation. ... He left behind a beautiful daughter, Sophia. Nobody can replace you, Orlando. I love you, bro.”