Press Release | Feb. 7, 2020

Marine Accounted For From World War II (Warren, R.)

WASHINGTON  –   The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that Marine Corps Reserve Pfc. Raymond Warren, 21, of Silverdale, Kansas, killed during World War II, was accounted for on June 10, 2019.

In November 1943, Warren was a member of Company K, 3rd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force, which landed against stiff Japanese resistance on the small island of Betio in the Tarawa Atoll of the Gilbert Islands, in an attempt to secure the island. Over several days of intense fighting at Tarawa, approximately 1,000 Marines and Sailors were killed and more than 2,000 were wounded, while the Japanese were virtually annihilated. Warren died between the first and second day of battle, Nov. 20-21, 1943. He was reported to have been buried in the Division Cemetery, which was eventually renamed to Cemetery #27.

In 1946, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company centralized all of the American remains found on Tarawa at Lone Palm Cemetery for later repatriation. However, almost half of the known casualties were never found. No recovered remains could be associated with Warren, and, in October 1949, a Board of Review declared him “non-recoverable.”

In 2015, History Flight, Inc., a nonprofit organization, notified DPAA that they discovered a burial site on Betio Island and recovered the remains of what they believed to be missing American service members who had been buried in Cemetery #27. The remains were accessioned into the DPAA laboratory.

To identify Warren’s remains, scientists from DPAA used anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) analysis.

Warren’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific along with the others killed or lost in WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.

Warren will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia. The date has yet to be determined.

DPAA is grateful to the Republic of Kiribati and History Flight, Inc. for their partnership in this mission.

For family and funeral information, contact the Marine Corps Casualty Office at (800) 847-1597.

For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for Americans who went missing while serving our country, visit the DPAA website at www.dpaa.mil, find us on social media at www.facebook.com/dodpaa or call (703) 699-1420/1169.

Press Release | Feb. 6, 2020

Soldier Accounted For From Korean War (Drews, H.)

WASHINGTON  –   The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that Army Master Sgt. Harold F. Drews, 21, of Elgin, Illinois, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for Nov. 5, 2019.

In December 1950, Drews was assigned to King Company, 3rd Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. For several days, his unit was engaged in intense fighting with the Chinese People’s Volunteer Forces near the Chosin Reservoir in North Korea. Drews went missing in action on Dec. 12, 1950. His remains could not be recovered.

On July 27, 2018, following the summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un in June 2018, North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The remains arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018, and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for identification.

To identify Drews’ remains, scientists from DPAA used anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and autosomal DNA (auSTR) analysis.

Drews’ name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, along with the others who are missing from the Korean War. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.

For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.

Drews will be buried Feb. 19, 2020, in St. Charles, Illinois.

For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for Americans who went missing while serving our country, visit the DPAA website at www.dpaa.mil, find us on social media at www.facebook.com/dodpaa or call (703) 699-1420/1169.

Press Release | Feb. 4, 2020

USS Oklahoma Sailor Accounted For From World War II (Wise, R.)

WASHINGTON  –   The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that Navy Fireman 1st Class Rex E. Wise, 21, of South Haven, Kansas, killed during World War II, was accounted for on Oct. 17, 2019.

On Dec. 7, 1941, Wise was assigned to the battleship USS Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Wise.

From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and Nu’uanu Cemeteries.

In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at Schofield Barracks. The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the identifications of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time. The AGRS subsequently buried the unidentified remains in 46 plots at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. In October 1949, a military board classified those who could not be identified as non-recoverable, including Wise.

Between June and November 2015, DPAA personnel exhumed the USS Oklahoma Unknowns from the Punchbowl for analysis.

To identify Wise’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.

Wise’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the Punchbowl, along with the others who are still missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.

DPAA is grateful to the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of the Navy for their partnership in this mission.

For family and funeral information, contact the Navy Casualty office at (800) 443-9298.

Wise will be buried April 22, 2020, in Braman, Oklahoma.

For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for Americans who went missing while serving our country, visit the DPAA website at www.dpaa.mil, find us on social media at www.facebook.com/dodpaa or call (703) 699-1420/1169.

Press Release | Jan. 29, 2020

Soldier Accounted For From Korean War (Ramirez, A.)

WASHINGTON  –   The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that Army Cpl. Arthur C. Ramirez, 19, of Pima, Arizona, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for Sept. 9, 2019.

In late 1950, Ramirez was a member of Battery B, 57th Field Artillery Battalion, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action on Dec. 6, 1950, when enemy forces attacked his unit near the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea. His remains could not be recovered following the attack.

On July 27, 2018, following the summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un in June 2018, North Korea turned over 55 boxes purported to contain the remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The remains arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018, and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for identification.

To identify Ramirez’s remains, scientists from DPAA used anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) and autosomal DNA (auSTR) analysis.

Ramirez’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, along with the others who are missing from the Korean War. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.

Ramirez will be buried March 19, 2020 in Marana, Arizona.

For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty office at (800) 892-2490.

For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for Americans who went missing while serving our country, visit the DPAA website at www.dpaa.mil, find us on social media at www.facebook.com/dodpaa or call (703) 699-1420/1169.

Press Release | Jan. 27, 2020

USS Oklahoma Sailor Accounted For From World War II (Carroll, J.)

WASHINGTON  –   The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that Navy Fireman 2nd Class Joseph W. Carroll, 20, killed during World War II, was accounted for on Aug. 19, 2019.

On Dec. 7, 1941, Carroll was assigned to the battleship USS Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Carroll.

For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for Americans who went missing while serving our country, visit the DPAA website at www.dpaa.mil, find us on social media at www.facebook.com/dodpaa or call (703) 699-1420/1169.