Newlywed Marine Rylee McCollum who was killed in Kabul terror blast was expecting baby in 3 weeks & new wife is a ‘mess’
HERO Marine Rylee McCollum’s new wife was expecting their first baby in just three weeks and his mother-in-law says his death has left the family shattered, The Sun can exclusively reveal.
McCollum, who was killed in the Kabul terror attack this week, had been in Afghanistan a matter of weeks and was due home in October to be reunited with his wife Jiennah Crayton, known as Gigi.
Officials revealed on Friday that McCollum graduated in 2019 from Jackson Hole High School in Wyoming before joining the US Marine Corps.
McCollum, who was sent to Afghanistan as evacuations started, is understood to have been killed while manning an airport checkpoint at the time of the bombing.
It has since emerged that an ISIS-K suicide bomber killed more than 100 people at Kabul airport after reportedly sneaking past Taliban security.
And McCollum is among at least 13 US troops and dozens of Afghan civilians dead.
Four other Marines who died in the attack have been identified as Jared Schmitz, Hunter Lopez, 20-year-old David Lee Espinoza and Kareem Nikoui — whose heartbroken dad blames President Biden for his death.
McCollum and Gigi only tied the knot in February this year having eloped in Vegas, and his mother-in-law, Jill Miller Crayton, said her 20-year-old daughter is a “mess” having been told the devastating news.
She told The Sun exclusively she is rushing to be by her side, flying to California, saying: “She’s having his baby next month, my first grandbaby.
“I’m working on getting a flight right now, I’m trying to get my week covered from work.
“I didn’t get to know him, I didn’t even get to meet him, but I do know that she was madly in love with him. He was her everything her future and her best friend.
“I couldn’t wait to meet him, he made her so incredibly happy. I hadn’t known her to be so happy until she married him and found out she was pregnant. It was like she was complete.”
This exclusive interview comes as:
- Names of US troops who died in the Kabul terror attack are revealed
- The devastated dad of Marine Kareem Nikoui slammed Joe Biden
- US Navy medic Max Soviak identified as his final post was unearthed
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Jill continued: “I was so proud of him, I was incredibly proud of him because he was a Marine who served his country but I was even more proud of him for the respect and the love that he showed my daughter.
“She’s a mess and she doesn’t like all the attention that’s going to fall on her, she thinks it should be all about him.”
She also said her daughter was “glued” to her TV screen watching the news on Thursday because she was so frantic with worry.
“I kept telling her ‘He’s okay sweetheart, don’t worry, he’s okay.’ And then she got that knock on the door, that knock that every military spouse hates to get at 3am.
“She loves him. And even though I’ve been through this, grief is very personal.
“My husband died when I was nine weeks pregnant with Gigi’s brother, 15 years ago, and unfortunately history is repeating itself.
“I never thought one of my daughters would go through what I did, it’s unreal and it’s awful.
“They met while he was in the military, I don’t know exactly how long they had been dating. I moved from San Diego two years ago, we had lived there our whole lives.”
While other families have hit out at Biden for sending troops to Afghanistan, Jill said now is “not a time for finger-pointing” and does not want politics to be the focus following the death of her son-in-law.
“He was a beautiful handsome man, a young man who had his whole life in front of him, who loved my daughter and was about to be a father. That’s what I focus on.”
Meanwhile, McCollum’s sister Cheyenne told DailyMail.com that her brother dreamed of being a Marine since he was a young child.
She told the news outlet: “Rylee was an amazing, man with a passion for the Marines. He was a son, a brother, a husband and a father with a baby due in just 3 weeks.
“He wanted to be a marine his whole life and carried around his rifle in his diapers and cowboy boots.
“He was determined to be in infantry and this was his first deployment.”
Cheyenne remembered her brother as “a tough, kind, loving kid who made an impact on everyone he met.”
“Rylee will always be a hero not just for the ultimate sacrifice he made for our country but for the way he impacted every life around him for the better,” Cheyenne added. “Making us stronger, kinder, teaching us to love deeper. We love you Rylee.”
Gov Mark Gordon said McCollum was from Bondurant, a small town approximately 45 minutes from Jackson.
He said in a statement: “I’m devastated to learn Wyoming lost one of our own in yesterday’s terrorist attack in Kabul.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of Rylee McCollum of Bondurant. Jennie and I, along with all of Wyoming and the entire country thank Rylee for his service.”
Prior to the deadly blast on Thursday, thousands of people rushed to the airport over the past 12 days hoping to flee the country after the Taliban took control.
Marine Corps General Kenneth McKenzie, commander of US Central Command, said the attack at the airport happened after at least one suicide bomber got past Taliban screening points.
He said troops may even have been searching the bomber when his device was detonated.
“We’re still investigating the exact circumstances,” he said in a briefing. “I don’t know the size of the bomb.'”
Thirteen US service members were killed in the explosion, which ISIS claimed responsibility for, including 12 Marines and one Navy medic, while 15 were injured.
