Army asks injured GI for refund

MOUNT LEBANON, PA. â€”  A soldier whose injuries in Iraq forced him to leave the military early received a letter from the Army asking him to repay a portion of his sign-up bonus.

Former Pfc. Jordan Fox “inadvertently� got a letter asking him to repay $2,800 of his $7,500 enlistment bonus, and officials were checking to see whether other injured soldiers were sent similar notices, the Army said in a statement Wednesday.

Soldiers who are injured or become ill while on active duty can keep all sign-up bonuses due them, the Army said. But the Army hasn’t decided whether to pay Fox his unused leave, a spokesman said.

Fox, 21, of the Pittsburgh suburb of Mount Lebanon, was partially blinded in his right eye and sustained a back injury in a roadside bomb explosion in Baquba in May. He returned to the United States two months later and received a discharge.

In late October, Fox got a letter from the Army seeking repayment of part of his enlistment bonus because he had completed only about a year of his three-year service. Another letter a week later warned he could be charged interest if he didn’t make a payment within 30 days.