DETROIT (NEWSCHANNEL 3) - A soldier from a Detroit suburb has been killed in Iraq.

Private First Class Travis Haslip was killed when an improvised explosive device exploded near his vehicle on May 19th in Baghdad, according to the Department of Defense.

Haslip is from the suburban Detroit town of Clarkston, where his father and stepmother still live.

"He was just a great kid, just very intelligent and it's a shame that he is gone. He was doing what he wanted to do. Nobody forced him to go into the service. In fact we all talked about him not going again", said Joy White, his stepmother.

The private was one of six soldiers killed in the attack. They were assigned to the 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.