‘He just wanted to be with him’: Marine’s older brother, who was blown up in a suicide bombing during the airlift in Kabul, kills himself a year later at the memorial to the soldier
- Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui, 20, was one of 13 American soldiers killed at Kabul airport on August 26
- On August 9, his brother Dakota Halverson, 28, killed himself in front of a memorial in their hometown of Norco, California
- Her mother, Shana Chappell, said Halverson misses his brother very much and “just wanted to be with him again.”
- Announcing Halverson’s death, she said, “This morning my son Dakota went to see his brother Kareem.”
- The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is a US-based suicide prevention network with over 160 crisis centers accessible 24 hours a day via a toll-free hotline at 9-8-8
The brother of a Marine who died a year ago during the chaotic disengagement from Afghanistan killed himself at a shrine to his sibling.
Dakota Halverson, 28, of Norco, California, took his own life on August 9.
His brother Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui, 20, was one of 13 American soldiers killed on August 26 last year when a suicide bomber detonated an explosive device outside Kabul airport amid fleeing crowds.
“Dakota has expressed some of the things that have been troubling him, and one of those things was losing his brother Kareem and just wanting to be with him again,” said Shana Chappell, her mother.
“He still had a hard time believing that he was really gone.
“He snuck into the graveyard at night and slept on Kareem’s resting place.
“He took his own life across from a permanent memorial we have in town for his brother Kareem.”
Shana Chappell is pictured with her sons Kareem Nikoui (right) and Dakota Halverson. Nikoui was killed on August 26, 2021; his older brother took his own life on August 9th
The memorial to the 13 martyrs in Old Norco is pictured. The site was inaugurated in January
All 13 killed on August 26, 2021 are memorialized at the Norco site
The inauguration of the site is pictured in January
Chappell appeared to be referring to the Fallen 13 Memorial Flower Garden Square, which was dedicated in January next to Norco Country Center.
Nikoui, 20, died in Kabul on August 26, 2021
Nikoui was buried at Crestlawn Mortuary in Riverside on September 17.
On January 4th, on the occasion of Nikoui’s 21st birthday, the family celebrated his life at the grave.
Chappell, who announced Halverson’s death on Tuesday, said they were all grappling with the approaching anniversary of Nikoui’s death.
“The month of August has been very tough so far as we have a year ahead,” she wrote on Facebook.
“I see my kids as strong and like they can handle anything. That was my fault.
“My son Dakota has been talking a lot lately about how much he wants to be with Kareem, how much he misses him, etc…
Nikoui’s remains are pictured when they arrived in the United States at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware on August 29 last year
Chappell is seen with her son, Dakota Halverson
Nikoui’s family and friends can be seen at his grave in Riverside. Chappell said her son would sneak into the cemetery to sleep on his brother’s grave
“We all feel that way, so I haven’t seen the signs.
‘This morning my son Dakota went to his brother Kareem.’
Chappell, who blames Joe Biden for the death of her son, which she said was due to the withdrawal not being properly planned, said she “does not want to make this a political post.”
But, she added, the death of her second son was “the ripple effect.”
In a GoFundMe for funeral expenses, Chappell said Nikoui’s death proved “too hard” for his brother to bear.
She said Halverson wanted to be buried next to his brother.