Marine Lance Cpl. Robert Crutchfield

CLEVELAND — Robert Crutchfield had dreamed of joining the Marine Corps since grade school.

He joined the Marine ROTC at Bedford Heights High School and left for boot camp days after graduating in 2006.

He survived 14 months of gunfire in Iraq. But the 21-year-old lance corporal returned home for Christmas and was shot in the neck by two robbers on Jan. 5 at a bus stop.

Crutchfield died the night of May 18 from his injuries. His family wished he would have stayed longer in Iraq.

"That's the horror of the whole thing," said Alberta Holt, an aunt. "At least he would have known who was shooting at him. It would have been easier to take."

Holt said her nephew wanted nothing more in life than to serve his country. While home on leave, Crutchfield learned he would be shipped back to Iraq in February. He didn't share stories about the 14 months he already spent in a military-supply company, his aunt said.

Crutchfield and his girlfriend were at the bus stop after grocery shopping. He stepped out of the shelter and two men grabbed him and threw him against a telephone pole, said Lt. Thomas Stacho, police spokesman.

Ean Farrow, 19, and Thomas Ray III, 20, both of Cleveland, rifled through Crutchfield's pockets before one of them shot him in the neck, Stacho said.

Both men were arrested shortly after and charged with attempted murder, aggravated robbery and felonious assault. Prosecutors will now consider filing additional charges against them, Stacho said.

Crutchfield planned to study architecture in college after serving in the military. Crutchfield, Holt said, never caused trouble as a teenager and loved to read books.

He spent weeks rehabilitating at MetroHeath Medical Center and a nursing home after the shooting. He had been doing well with his occupational and speech therapy and started eating solid foods a few weeks ago, Holt said.

But on Saturday he came down with a high fever and an infection. He suffered a massive heart attack. His grandmother and sister were at his bedside.

(Mark Puente is a reporter for The Plain Dealer of Cleveland. He can be contacted at mpuente(at)plaind.com.)