A WREXHAM soldier has been seriously injured in an explosion in Afghanistan.

Shaun Stocker, from Rhostyllen, is  being treated in Selly Oak Hospital, Birmingham, following the incident.

The 20-year-old, who serves with the 1st Battalion the Royal Welsh, is understood to have suffered serious injuries in an explosion.

A spokesman for the Army in Wales confirmed Mr Stocker had been injured while on duty in Masizi, in the south east of the country, on April 4.

She said she could not go into further details about his injuries or the circumstances of the incident.

Elements of D and A Companies arrived at Dale Barracks, Chester, on Tuesday morning, with the entire battalion of more than 500 men scheduled to be back in the UK by the end of the week.

Among them was the Royal Welsh’s commanding officer, Lt Col Nick Lock, who told the Leader yesterday that he had visited the hospital and Mr Stocker’s family after arriving back in the UK on Tuesday.

He said: “I went straight down to Birmingham to see him – he was there with four of his mates.

“I spoke with his parents and the family is full of praise for what we have done for him. Our focus is on the families of those injured and those families who are bereaved and that’s exactly what we are doing at the moment.

“We are making sure he is looked after and both he and his family are part of the wider Army family.”

Mr Stocker’s family were not available to speak yesterday but friends and relatives have left many supportive messages on his page on social networking site Facebook.