Press Release | Oct. 6, 2005

Airmen Missing From World War II Identified (Allen, Cartwright, Stubbs)

The remains of three U.S. servicemen, missing in action since 1941, have been identified and are being returned to their families for burial with full military honors.

They are Army Air Forces Second Lieutenant Augustus J. Allen, of Myrtle Springs, Texas, Staff Sergeant James D. Cartwright, of Los Angeles, Calif., and Corporal Paul R. Stubbs, of Haverhill, Mass.

On June 8, 1941, Allen, Cartwright and Stubbs departed France Field, Panama in an O-47A aircraft, en route to Rio Hato, Panama. When the aircraft failed to arrive at its destination, a search was initiated by both air and ground forces, but with negative results.

In April 1999, a Panamanian citizen reported to Panamanian Civil Aeronautics (PCA) he had discovered aircraft wreckage while hunting in the mountains of Panama Province, Republic of Panama. After a PCA Search and Rescue team surveyed the site, it was reported to the Joint POW Accounting Command (JPAC). JPAC specialists surveyed the area in August 1999, and excavated the site in February 2002 where they recovered remains and crew-related artifacts. The crash site was along Allen’s suspected flight path, and the aircraft was consistent with O-47A aircraft from the 39th Observation Squadron, their assigned unit. Additionally, the team recovered crew-related items at the site which helped confirm the identity of the airmen.

Scientists of JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Lab used mitochondrial DNA as one of the tools in the identification of the remains of Allen, Cartwright and Stubbs.

Of the 88,000 Americans missing in action from World War II, the Korean War, the Cold War, the Vietnam War, and Desert Storm, 78,000 are from World War II.

For additional information on the Department of Defense’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO website at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo.

Press Release | Aug. 9, 2005

Twelve MIAs From Vietnam War Are Identified (King, Cook, Heyne, Mitchell, Fritsch, Blackman, Czerwonka, Hempel, Lopez, McGonigle, Sargent, Miller)

The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of five U.S. servicemen, missing in action from the Vietnam War, have been identified and are being returned to their families for burial. An additional seven servicemen will be buried as a group in Arlington National Cemetery, near Washington, D.C.

The men who were individually identified are: Cpl. Gerald E. King, of Knoxville, Tenn.; Lance Cpls. Joseph F. Cook, of Foxboro, Mass.; Raymond T. Heyne, of Mason, Wis.; Donald W. Mitchell, of Princeton, Ky.; and Thomas W. Fritsch, of Cromwell, Conn., all U.S. Marine Corps. Additional group remains are those of: Pfcs. Thomas J. Blackman, of Racine, Wis.; Paul S. Czerwonka, of Stoughton, Mass.; Barry L. Hempel, of Garden Grove, Calif.; Robert C. Lopez, of Albuquerque, N.M.; William D. McGonigle, of Wichita, Kan.; and Lance Cpl. James R. Sargent, of Anawalt, W. Va., all U.S. Marine Corps. Additionally, the remains of U.S. Army Sgt Glenn E. Miller, of Oakland, Calif. will be included in the group burial.

The Marines were part of an artillery platoon airlifted to provide support to a unit under threat of attack from North Vietnamese forces near Kham Duc in South Vietnam. On May 9, 1968, this 11th Mobile Strike Force had been directed to reconnoiter an area known as Little Ngok Tavak Hill near the Laos-Vietnam border, in the Kham Duc Province. Their base came under attack by North Vietnamese Army troops, and after a ten-hour battle, all of the survivors were able to withdraw from the area.

Six investigations beginning in 1993, and a series of interviews of villagers and former Vietnamese soldiers led the teams in 1994, 1997 and 1998 to specific defensive positions within the large battle site. Maps provided by American survivors helped to locate some key areas on the battlefield. Three excavations by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) in 1998 and 1999 yielded human remains, personal effects, and other material evidence.

JPAC scientists and Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory specialists used mitochondrial DNA as one of the forensic tools to help identify the remains.

Of the 88,000 Americans missing in action from all conflicts, 1,815 are from the Vietnam War, with 1,381 of those within the country of Vietnam. Another 768 Americans have been accounted for in Southeast Asia since the end of the war. Of those, 540 are from within Vietnam.

For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO Web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.

Press Release | July 21, 2005

Korean War Missing In Action Serviceman Identified (Heath)

The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and are being returned to his family for burial with full military honors.

He is Cpl. Leslie R. Heath, of Bridgeport, Illinois. His interment is scheduled for August 20 in Bridgeport.

On the morning of April 23, 1951, Heath and more than 80 members of the A Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Regimental Combat Team were captured by the Chinese Communist forces. They were held in a temporary POW camp known as Suan Camp Complex, in North Hwanghae Province, North Korea. A former American POW who was returned to the U.S. through Operation Little Switch recounted that Heath died in June 1951 while imprisoned.

On July 16, 1993, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea returned 17 boxes of remains to the U.S. from the Korean War. One of the boxes contained remains of several individuals and two of Heath’s identification tags. Scientists of the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) conducted years of forensic examinations of the remains and associated evidence until they made an identification two months ago.

Information provided by the North Koreans about the recovered remains was consistent with the approximate location where Heath was believed held captive and died. Artifacts in the boxes were those of a soldier in the U.S. Army infantry at the time of the war.

JPAC submitted skeletal remains on 11 occasions to the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory for analysis. Heath’s mitochondrial DNA sequence matched that of two of his maternal relatives.

Of the 88,000 Americans unaccounted-for from World War II, the Korean War, the Cold War, the Vietnam War and Desert Storm, more than 8,100 are from the Korean War. More than 2,000 of those were held as prisoners of war.

For additional information on the Department of Defense’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO website at www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call 703-699-1169.

Press Release | June 29, 2005

Korean War Missing In Action Serviceman Identified (Bellar)

The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. Army soldier, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and are being returned to his family for burial in Schererville, Ind.

He is Private First Class Lowell W. Bellar of Gary, Ind. He is to be buried on July 15, the date of his birth in 1931.

In Nov.-Dec. 1950 Bellar’s unit, Company M of the 31st Infantry Regiment, was surrounded and overrun by Chinese communist forces near the Chosin Reservoir in northeast North Korea. Elements of his unit joined others in their breakout and fighting retreat as they made their way to relative safety further south to an area near the village of Hagaru. Regimental records compiled after the battle indicate that Bellar was killed in action on Dec. 1, 1950. More than 1,000 men, primarily Marines and Army soldiers, are still missing in North Korea from the Chosin campaign.

The DPMO opened negotiations with North Korea in January 1996 for U.S. teams to recover remains of servicemen still missing from the Korean War. Joint U.S.-North Korean recovery teams, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) excavated a site in Sept. and again in Oct. 2001 believed to be the location where American soldiers were buried. They recovered remains of 12 individuals, some of which were later identified as those of Bellar.

Laboratory analysis of the remains by forensic scientists at JPAC led to Bellar’s identification. Comparison of Bellar’s mitochondrial DNA data with samples from his family were key factors in their finding.

Of the 88,000 Americans unaccounted-for from all conflicts, approximately 8,100 are from the Korean War. Remains believed to be those of more than 220 American servicemen have been recovered in joint operations in North Korea since 1996.

For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO Web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.

Press Release | June 27, 2005

Korean War Missing In Action Serviceman Identified (Strom)

The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and are being returned to his family for burial in Fergus Falls, Minn. on Wednesday.

He is Corporal John O. Strom of Fergus Falls, Minn.

On the night of Nov. 1, 1950, Strom’s unit, the 1st Battalion of the 8th Cavalry Regiment, came under attack by Chinese communist forces near the village of Unsan in North Korea. His battalion sought to escape the larger Chinese unit, and evacuated along a route well documented from U.S. records.

The fighting raged on for several days, and by Nov. 4, those men able to escape withdrew to friendly lines south of the Kuryong River, though more than 380 soldiers of the 8th Cavalry were unaccounted- for.

In July and August 2002, a joint team of U.S. and North Korean specialists investigated a site near Unsan where a villager had reportedly reburied from another location remains believed to be those of a U.S. serviceman. The team, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), excavated both sites and found human remains as well as a few pieces of non-biological evidence. The team was also given Strom’s military identification tag found by the villager.

Laboratory analysis of the remains by forensic scientists at JPAC led to Strom’s identification. Comparison of mitochondrial DNA results were key factors in their finding.

Of the 88,000 Americans who are missing from all conflicts, approximately 8,100 are from the Korean War. More than 1,800 remain unaccounted-for from the Vietnam War, 126 from the Cold War, and 78,000 from World War II. Remains believed to be those of more than 220 American servicemen have been recovered in joint operations in North Korea.

For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO Web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.