Nigel Edge, who changed his name from Sean DeBevoise in 2023, appeared in his Marine uniform on the red carpet in 2012 alongside the singer as her special date for the night, accompanied by his service dog Rusty.

“Me and my date (Sgt Sean Debevoise),” Picker said on X as she posted a picture of her with the military veteran.

DeBevoise, who was wounded in Iraq, boasted about the honor of being Pickler’s date at the event.

“I am ecstatic about being here at the CMT Music Awards with Kellie, even more to consider her a friend,” he said at the time, according to Taste of Country. “She is the most sincere person I know. She is an angel.”

The Marine has said he was wounded in two separate IED attacks during a 2006 tour in Iraq, along with a bullet wound that left shrapnel lodged in his head.

Edge was able to recover from his severe injuries, with the veteran meeting Pickler at a charity event in North Carolina dedicated to the troops.

A representative for Pickler did not immediately respond to a Post request for comment Sunday.

North Carolina authorities identified Edge, 39, as a combat veteran allegedly suffering from PTSD when he was taken into custody Saturday night after the mass shooting, which left three people dead and five others injured.

Edge pulled up to the American Fish Company restaurant in Southport Yacht Basin, about 30 miles south of Wilmington, and began spraying bullets into the crowd of unsuspecting diners, authorities said.

He was armed with a short barrel AR rifle, equipped with a suppressor, a folding stock and scope, court documents charge.

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Edge faces three counts of first-degree murder, five counts of attempted first-degree murder and five counts of assault with a deadly weapon.

In various lawsuits and a book he wrote about his combat history, Edge claimed he was the victim of friendly fire in a plot orchestrated by “LGBTQ White Supremacists” who wanted him dead for being a straight man.

The motive behind Saturday’s attack has yet to be determined, police said.

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