ASHLEY, N.D. (AP) — A North Dakotan who was a 17-year veteran of the U.S. Marshals Service will be laid to rest in his hometown.Supervisory Deputy U.S. Marshal Norman Merkel died in the line of duty due to a medical condition in the fitness room of the federal courthouse in Corpus Christi, Texas, on Jan. 16, 2019. He was 45.

Merkel was assigned to the Marshals Service’s Southern District of Texas his entire career. He was a supervisor in Corpus Christi and task force commander of the Gulf Coast Violent Offenders and Fugitive Task Force.

An Army veteran, Merkel was a deputy sheriff in McIntosh County, North Dakota, before joining the Marshals Service in 2001.

His funeral will be held Saturday in Ashley. A memorial service will be held Feb. 16 in Victoria, Texas.