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Soldier who was wounded in 2009 search for Bergdahl has died

This August 2014 file photo provided by Eugene R. Fidell shows Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl preparing to be interviewed by Army investigators. The attorney for Bergdahl, who was held as a prisoner of war in Afghanistan for five years before his release, says the soldier wants to go to college once the investigation of how he was captured by the Taliban is finished. (Eugene R. Fidell / AP)
Associated Press

LOGANVILLE, Ga. – A retired soldier who was shot in the head while searching for Army Pvt. Bowe Bergdahl has died.

Master Sgt. Mark Allen, 46, of Loganville, Georgia, died Saturday, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. His obituary stated he died from complications of an injury sustained while serving in Afghanistan.

Allen was shot during an insurgent ambush in 2009. He was left unable to speak and paralyzed over much of his body.

His official cause of death hasn’t been released.

Allen spent 21 years in the Army and the Army National Guard. He retired upon receiving a Purple Heart in 2013.

Bergdahl was captured by the Taliban and held for five years. He was spared prison time for abandoning his post and endangering military comrades who participated in the lengthy search for him.