The deaths of six U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan are being tied , directly or indirectly , to the search for Army Sgt . Bowe Bergdahl after he went missing and was captured by the Taliban in 2009 , former unit members allege . The former soldiers ' controversial accusations come days after Bergdahl was released after almost five years of enemy captivity . A U.S. official told CNN that Pentagon and Army officials have looked at the claims , and `` right now there is no evidence to back that up . '' Asked about the debate , Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel told reporters Wednesday that he did not know of specific circumstances or details of soldiers allegedly dying as a result of the efforts to find Bergdahl . It is also `` unfair '' to Bergdahl and his family to presume anything about his motivations for leaving the base , Hagel said . He stressed that the Army would conduct a review of the case . Former Army Sgt . Evan Buetow , Bergdahl 's former team leader , elaborated on the accusations . `` I ca n't say for a fact and I do n't know if there is really anyone who can prove that soldiers died on a directed mission to find Bergdahl . However , every mission , especially in the following two or more months -- those were directed missions , '' he told CNN 's Jake Tapper . `` Everything after that , they were still missions that were in search of Bergdahl . '' Here 's a look at those six fallen soldiers . 2nd Lt. Darryn Deen Andrews . Andrews was killed in September 2009 when enemy forces attacked his vehicle with a roadside bomb and a rocket-propelled grenade in the Yahya Khel district of Paktika province , Afghanistan . The Dallas , Texas , native was 34 . Andrews ' mother , who still wears her son 's ID tags , spoke to KHOU this week . The CNN affiliate reported Andrews died using his body to shield two other soldiers from a blast . Sondra Andrews feels her son was killed trying to save a `` traitor . '' `` My son 's life was worth more than that , '' she told KHOU . Staff Sgt . Clayton Patrick Bowen . Staff Sgt . Clayton Patrick Bowen was a 12-year Army veteran who had served as a drill sergeant and shooting instructor before being shipped out to Afghanistan in February 2009 , according to a U.S. Army account of his service . The 29-year-old San Antonio , Texas , man was traveling to provide security for Afghanistan 's presidential elections when his vehicle hit a roadside bomb on August 18 , 2009 , according to the Army account . He and another soldier , Pfc . Morris Lewis Walker , died . Bowen , who joined the Army straight out of high school , served as a member of the 82nd Airborne Division 's All-American Chorus before deploying to Afghanistan with the 501st Infantry Regiment . He also was featured as the cover model for a book on how to survive basic combat training , the Army account quoted his mother , Reesa Doebbler , as saying . `` Clay had a sense of humor second to none and lit up a room when he walked in , '' Doebbler said in a 2010 CNN iReport . Pfc . Morris Lewis Walker . Walker died at age 23 when a roadside bomb exploded as he traveled through Afghanistan 's Dila district . He died alongside Staff Sgt . Bowen on a mission to provide security for Afghanistan 's presidential elections , according to the Army . Walker joined the Army in 2008 after attending the University of North Carolina , where he played on the basketball team , according to a UNC memorial web page . `` If you got to spend time with Mo Walker , you remembered it , '' the student newspaper , The Daily Tar Heel , quoted former student Sam Rosenthal as saying . `` He had a charisma and a warmth that just rubbed off and also a pride and a sense about himself . I had never met anybody with so much confidence and even borderline arrogance that never rubbed people the wrong way . '' Staff Sgt . Kurt Robert Curtiss . Curtiss joined the Army the day after the 9/11 attack , according to CNN affiliate KSL . He was shot to death during a firefight in which his unit was supporting Afghan security forces in Paktika province on August 26 , 2009 . The Murray , Utah , man died during what the Army called a clearing operation at a hospital at a medical clinic in Sar Hawza . He was a well-regarded squad leader whose leadership style engendered fierce loyalty in at least one soldier -- the squad member who faced an onslaught of enemy fire in an effort to rescue him , the Army said in a 2009 article about two soldiers awarded the Silver Star for actions during the firefight . `` When I first got here , he showed me everything , '' the Army piece quoted one of those soldiers , Spec . Robert Parson , as saying . `` Just small things that only a veteran would know . '' He left behind a wife , two small children , and a humorous reputation , his mother , Ruth Serrano , told KSL . `` He was quite the joker , '' she said . `` He could cheer up anybody . '' Pfc . Matthew Michael Martinek . Martinek died September 11 , 2009 , at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Landstuhl , Germany , of injuries suffered from an attack about a week earlier in Afghanistan . Enemy forces attacked his vehicle with a roadside bomb , a rocket-propelled grenade and small-arms fire in Paktika province . His mother spoke to CNN affiliate KTUU , praising her son 's sacrifice . Martinek was sent to Afghanistan during the first quarter of 2009 , the station said . `` What we hope will not be lost on the American people is the true heroism of the soldiers who risked their safety to relentlessly attempt to rescue Bowe , '' said Cheryl Brandes . `` One of those brave men was our son and brother Matthew Martinek . '' Martinek , 20 , was a native of DeKalb , Illinois . Staff Sgt . Michael Chance Murphrey . Murphrey was killed in September 2009 when forces attacked his unit with a roadside bomb in Paktika province . A native of Snyder , Texas , he was 25 . According to an online obituary , Murphrey decided he wanted to be an Army paratrooper when his family took him skydiving on his 17th birthday . He loved to hunt , hike , camp and fish . Murphrey was survived by his wife and two young children , a son and daughter . EXPLORE : War Casualties Memorial . Obama : I do n't apologize for Bergdahl swap . How big a terror risk are former Guantanamo prisoners ?
Former soldiers allege at least six soldiers were killed in the area . One official : ` ` Right now there is no evidence to back that up '' A mother of one said she and her son died trying to save a ` ` traitor '' Another is described as a hero , someone who could cheer up anyone .