VACAVILLE, Calif. — A 28-year-old soldier from Vacaville died this week in Iraq when a car bomb detonated near his checkpoint.

Army Staff Sgt. Jerry L. Bonifacio Jr. died Monday while protecting the Green Zone, a fortification in Baghdad designed to keep U.S. officials safe.

Bonifacio, who also worked at a Martinez refinery, had only three months remaining on his deployment to Iraq. He was engaged to Michelle Baptiste, who shared an apartment in Vacaville with Bonifacio.

Hearing the news was “numbing,” Baptiste told The Reporter of Vacaville.

“They read it off a paper. It was really cold. Like they do it all the time,” she said. “Everyone just says they feel numb. It doesn’t seem real.”

Bonifacio was remembered for his love of comic books and heavy metal concerts, attending concerts of some his favorite bands — Dio, Poison, Motley Crue and...