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South Vietnam Thomas A. Mangino Paul A. Hasenbeck David M. Winters Daniel R. Nidds (0646)

On April 21, 1967, Special Fourth Class Mangino and PFCs Hasenbeck, Winters, and Nidds, members of the 196th Light Infantry Brigade, were returning from a combat patrol. They had borrowed a sampan from local residents to make the return trip to a landing site near their unit in Binh Son District, Quang Ngai Province. A second sampan, the lead boat, reached the dock but was then out of sight of the other sampan following with only the four servicemen on board. Shortly thereafter came the sound of a burst of weapons firing. Twenty minutes later, the four patrol members had still not reached the dock, and a search party was sent to locate them.

Based on available information, the four men were last seen talking with several Vietnamese in another sampan. Later reports were received that four Americans had been captured by local Viet Cong forces on April 21st. Other reports were received that unidentified Americans were teaching English to Viet Cong female cadre and that Americans had been buried in the area. These reports were placed in the individuals' files as possibly pertaining to them.

In May 1991, a U.S. team was advised by a Vietnamese official that PFC Winters was dead. In August 1992, a joint U.S./Vietnamese team in the area of this incident interviewed witnesses with first hand or hearsay knowledge of it. The sources stated the four men were ambushed, and their bodies were thrown into the river to keep them from being observed by search and rescue helicopters. The bodies were later buried in three separate locations in an area which today is under the Song Tra River. In November 1992, Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs Chairman John Kerry received a wartime diary, describing the capture and subsequent death of the four U.S. servicemen, from People's Army of Vietnam Central Military Museum Director, Senior Colonel Dai. Senior Colonel Dai's diary appears to contain information correlating to this incident in which the four servicemen are recorded as having died. This case is still under active investigation by Joint Task Force-Full Accounting.

Returning U.S. POWs had no information on their fate. They were initially declared missing. Each was declared dead/body not recovered on separate dates between 1973 and 1978.

South Vietnam Roger D. Hamilton (0647)

On April 21, 1967, Lance Corporal Hamilton, a member of the 1st Marine Division, was with his unit in Quang Tin Province when it began receiving heavy enemy fire and was forced to withdraw. Corporal Hamilton was last known wounded and was left behind during the unit's quick retreat. A search operation in the area through April 22nd failed to locate him. He was declared missing.

In August 1967, U.S. intelligence received information from two Vietnam People's Army prisoners that a U.S. Marine had been captured in April 1967 in circumstances similar to that of the loss of Corporal Hamilton. They were unable to provide any specific information on his eventual fate.

Returning U.S. POWs were unable to provide any information on the fate of Corporal Hamilton. After Operation Homecoming he was declared dead/body not recovered.

In August 1989, U.S. field investigators in Vietnam interviewed witnesses concerning the fate of Corporal Hamilton, but the U.S. investigators only received vague statements. Additional investigation in January 1991 led U.S. investigators to his reported burial site. They recovered one partial set of remains at one location and small bone fragments at a second site nearby. The reports were vague about whom the remains were associated, and it was not possible to correlate the remains to this incident.

North Vietnam Michael J. Estocin (0656)

On April 26, 1967, Lieutenant Commander Estocin was the pilot of an A-4E on a SAM suppression mission over North Vietnam. His aircraft was hit by a surface-to-air missile and went out of control, but he later regained control of it. Defense Department records state he was last seen entering overcast at 3,500 feet and crashed into coastal waters off Cat Ba Island. A search and rescue effort was suspended April 27, 1967. On that date, Radio Hanoi broadcast a reference to a shoot down and capture of a U.S. pilot possibly correlating to Commander Estocin's shoot down.

On April 29th, a People's Army newspaper article referred to the shoot down of an aircraft and a rescue helicopter coming to rescue the downed pilot. This report was placed in Commander Estocin's file as a possible correlation.

Commander Estocin was initially declared missing. His casualty status was later changed to POW based on sensitive source information. He was not reported alive during Operation Homecoming, and, in November 1977, he was declared dead/body not recovered.

A returning U.S. POW reported that another U.S. POW, whom he met in prison in North Vietnam, relayed a discussion he had had with Mrs. Estocin prior to his own shoot down. Allegedly, the U.S. POW, Commander Stratton, had written that Commander Estocin was alive and a POW. In January 1974, the Defense Department confirmed that Commander Estocin had been misidentified as a POW in sensitive source material.

In July 1990, U.S. intelligence received information from a northern Vietnamese refugee about an aircraft shoot down which occurred in 1967 near Cat Ba Island. Remains were reportedly found in the water near the crash site. Also, skeletal remains were reportedly seized by Vietnamese officials from a refugee boat captured near Cat Ba Island in February 1989. In March 1991, U.S. investigators in Vietnam visited Cat Ba Island but were unable to develop any information regarding this loss incident. They were told by Vietnamese officials that Commander Estocin was believed to have drowned twenty nautical miles off Cat Ba Island. Other reports were received of a body washing up along the shore to the north of Cat Ba Island.

Commander John B. Nichols, retired, recently wrote of his own wartime combat experiences, published by the Naval Institute Press, entitled On Yankee Station. Commander Nichols was on the scene when Commander Estocin was hit and crashed. Commander Nichols described seeing Commander Estocin's aircraft invert, his tank blow off and his missiles fire. He followed him to the ocean and saw him impact, still inverted, but did not see a parachute come from the aircraft.

North Vietnam Roger M. Netherland (0667)

On May 10, 1967, Commander Netherland was launched in an A-4C from the U.S.S. Hancock as the leader of a flight of aircraft on a mission against Kien An Airfield near the port city of Hai Phong. Three surface-to-air missiles were launched at his flight, and the third missile exploded below his aircraft. His wingman reported observing him drop his external tanks and begin a left turn streaming fuel. His aircraft then did an inverted roll and crashed. There was no ejection seen. A search for sign of him was negative. He was initially declared missing in action. After the end of hostilities he was declared dead/body not recovered. Returning U.S. POWs were unable to provide any information that he was alive in the northern Vietnamese prison system.

In December 1982, a Vietnamese refugee reported the downing of a U.S. aircraft and described the recovery and burial of remains from the crash site. The incident appeared to correlate to that of Commander Netherland.

In September 1989, Vietnam returned the alleged remains of Commander Netherland together with his identity card and wallet. Forensic examination of the remains concluded they belonged to an adult male but a board decided that they could neither rule out nor recommend identification of the remains.

A U.S. team in Vietnam during July 1990 conducted a survey of the crash site associated with Commander Netherland. The site location and information concerning the circumstances of the crash were consistent with the known facts surrounding Commander Netherland's loss. A return to the site in December 1991 resulted in witness interviews who provided their knowledge of the crash, including a description of human remains located in a position consistent with the results of a high angle high speed dive into the ground.

South Vietnam Carlos Ashlock (0678)

On May 12, 1967, Corporal Ashlock and Lance Corporal Jose Agosto- Santos, members of the 5th Marine Regiment, were with their unit on an operation in Quang Nam Province. Their unit encountered two reinforced battalions of the Vietnam People's Army and withdrew. After the withdrawal, neither Ashlock nor Agosto-Santos could be located. Soon afterward, one unit member reported seeing People's Army troops carrying away Agosto-Santos. A report was also received from a local Vietnamese official that two wounded U.S. Marines had been seen in the custody of the Vietnam People's Army. This report was viewed as possibly correlating to Ashlock and Agosto-Santos. In June 1967, a former Viet Cong doctor at Hospital B-25 reported Ashlock was alive and had been treated at his hospital. He was last seen alive in July 1967. Both individuals were initially declared missing in action.

Corporal Agosto-Santos returned alive at Operation Homecoming. Neither he nor other returning POWs were able to provide any information on the fate of Corporal Ashlock. Corporal Ashlock was declared dead/body not recovered, in July 1976.

In March 1991, Vietnam repatriated remains identified as those of Carlos Ashlock. U.S. examination of those remains resulted in a determination that neither the remains identified by Vietnam as those of Corporal Ashlock nor any other remains turned over in March 1991 could be associated with Corporal Ashlock.

Recent field investigations in Vietnam have located witnesses who provided information concerning the capture of Corporal Ashlock. Witnesses reported burial sites, but they could not be positively confirmed, and no remains were recovered. The information these witnesses provided does not increase the knowledge already known that Corporal Ashlock was last known alive and in captivity.

Cambodia Joe L. Delong (0689)

On May 18, 1967, Private First Class Delong was a machine gunner from the 1st Battalion, 8th Infantry, in Phu Pah District, Pleiku Province, South Vietnam. His unit's position, approximately 14 kilometers northwest of the village of Duc Co, was attacked and overrun by hostile forces. PFC Delong was missing after the unit reformed.

On May 20, 1967, a Viet Cong prisoner described an American in captivity who correlated to PFC Delong. Delong was listed as a POW at the time of Operation Homecoming.

In June 1967, a People's Army of Vietnam publication from the B-3 Theater of Operation, entitled Tay Nguyen, reported that the K4 Battalion had captured a U.S. POW, and this unit was transferred to regimental level. This was believed to refer to the capture of PFC Delong, and the regiment to which it referred was believed to be the 320th Regiment.

PFC Delong was listed by the Provisional Revolutionary Government as having died in captivity. His date of death was given as November 1967.

U.S. POWs repatriated during Operation Homecoming stated PFC Delong and two other U.S. POWs escaped from a B-3 Theater level POW camp on November 6, 1967, while they were being detained in Ratanakiri Province, Cambodia, approximately two kilometers from the border with Vietnam and an estimated 70 kilometers west of Kontum, South Vietnam. Several days later, the remaining POWs were shown PFC Delong's trousers by their prison camp commander and were told that Delong had been killed resisting capture. The two other U.S. POWs were recaptured.

South Vietnam Walter F. Wrobleski (0703)

On May 21, 1967, Wrobleski was the pilot of a UH-1C helicopter, one in a flight of seven helicopters on an extraction mission into the A Shau Valley, Thua Thien Province. On board with him were Warrant Officer Corkran, Specialist Fourth Class Hall and Private First Class Szwed. While making a strafing run, their helicopter was hit by heavy machine gun fire which knocked out their engine. After being hit by another burst of fire, their helicopter went out of control and crashed, rolling down into a small ravine. Several minutes later a red ground panel was seen. Ten minutes later the helicopter exploded. A white ground panel was also seen three hours later.

PFC Szwed was rescued alive. WO Corkran and Specialist Hall were also located alive, and a line was dropped to them on the ground. While being lifted to the helicopter, it began to receive heavy enemy fire, and it lifted off, dragging Warrant Officer Corkran and Specialist Hall into trees which knocked them off the ladder to the jungle below. South Vietnamese Army forces recovered the body of Specialist Hall on May 22 and, on May 23rd, the body of Warrant Officer Corkran. All survivors stated Wrobleski was never seen alive after the crash.

During the war years, a former member of the People's Army of Vietnam stated he saw an American with a South Vietnamese Army POW being escorted north along the Ho Chi Minh Trail in May 1967. This report was placed in Wrobleski's file as a possible correlation to his case.

Wrobleski was initially declared missing. In February 1978, he was declared dead/body not recovered based on a presumptive finding of death. Returning U.S. POWs were unable to provide any information on his eventual fate.

In January 1991, U.S. investigators in Vietnam interviewed two witnesses to the crash of a helicopter correlating closely to this loss incident. They reported observing a body at the crash site, and other soldiers, possibly from nearby commo-liaison station T52, retrieved a watch from the dead serviceman. The team was taken to the crash site but was unable to locate any human remains or other artifacts.

North Vietnam Kenneth F. Backus Elton L. Perrine (0706)

On May 22, 1967, Captain Perrine and First Lieutenant Backus were the crew of an F-4C, one of two aircraft in a flight against the Kep railroad yard. The second aircraft observed Captain Perrine's aircraft make a bomb run on the target and, five seconds later, observed a large explosion three miles east of the target in Lang Son Province. There were no chute and no beacon signals. There was 37mm and 57mm anti-aircraft fire in the area. However, the other aircrew could not confirm that Captain Perrine's aircraft was hit by hostile fire, and they could not pinpoint the crash site's precise location.

On May 24th, the New China News Agency reported the downing of a U.S. aircraft over Lang Son Province on May 22nd and stated that the pilots were captured. This aircraft was the only aircraft lost in the area on that date. Both crewmen were initially reported missing in action.

Returning U.S. POWs were unable to provide any information on the crew's fate. In February 1979, each was declared dead/body not recovered based on a presumptive finding of death.

South Vietnam Brian K. McGar Joseph E. Fitzgerald John E. Jakovac (0715)

On May 30, 1967, Sergeant Jakovac and PFCs McGar and Fitzgerald were members of a five man reconnaissance patrol in Quang Ngai Province. The team was deployed to counter hostile fire from a nearby hedgerow and to set up an observation point on a hill top. They failed to make a nightly radio check an hour and fifteen minutes after climbing the hill. A search and rescue effort located two other patrol members, both dead, in a shallow grave in the area. There was a trail of blood leading from the area, hand grenade fragmentations and U.S. and foreign shell casings which gave evidence to an engagement. The search effort continued for three days but failed to locate the other three missing patrol members.

Following their disappearance, U.S. intelligence received several reports about grave sites in the area. In July 1972, a former Viet Cong stated that he had seen two U.S. prisoners in Quang Tin Province in July 1967, and this report was placed in the files of these MIAs, although there was no specific correlation to them.

All three Marines were declared dead/body not recovered on different dates during 1975 and 1976. None of the three was reported alive in the Vietnamese prison system by returning U.S. POWs.

South Vietnam Di Reyes Ibanez (0723)

On June 5, 1967, Sergeant Ibanez was a member of a 3rd Marine Division reconnaissance patrol in Quang Tri Province. Shortly after midnight, a guard heard a moan and the sound of brush breaking from the area where Sergeant Ibanez was sleeping. A later search party recovered his rifle and pack. In the morning a patrol located a partial dental plate and blood trail. The blood trail led along a path from his last known location to a nearby village. A search of the area turned up freshly dug foxholes with evidence of recent occupancy and signs that something had been dragged along the trail. The partial plate was described by the unit's dental surgeon as identical to the teeth artificially replaced. Sergeant Ibanez was never found. Sergeant Ibanez was initially declared missing. In March 1978, he was declared dead/body not recovered. He was not reported alive in the Vietnamese prison system by returning U.S. POWs.

South Vietnam Robert L. Platt, Jr. (0728)

On June 10, 1967, Private First Class Platt was a member of a 101st Airborne Division patrol ambushed while on a search and destroy mission in South Vietnam. Platt, reportedly wounded several times, was left behind during his unit's withdrawal. He was declared missing.

In 1968, U.S. intelligence received a captured Viet Cong document apparently belonging to the 270th Transportation Regiment of Military Region 5, a unit operating in the area Private First Class Platt was last seen. It noted that an American Private First Class had been captured on June 10, 1967 and that he died of his wounds on June 11, 1967. This was viewed by U.S. intelligence as possible a correlation to PFC Platt. A Viet Cong prisoner interrogated shortly thereafter described seeing an American prisoner being brought to his medical unit which was destroyed in a U.S. bombing. The prisoner did not know if the American was killed or survived, and this report was also thought to possibly pertain to Platt.

In March 1978, Private First Class Platt was declared dead/body not recovered. Returning U.S. POWs were unable to provide any information on his fate.

In January 1991, U.S. investigators in Vietnam interviewed potential witnesses who were thought to be able to provide information about Platt. No new information on his precise fate was learned.

South Vietnam James Lee Van Bendegom (0762)

On July 12, 1967, Private First Class Van Bendegom and other members of his 4th Infantry Division were on patrol when they engaged a hostile force in the Ia Drang Valley, Pleiku Province. PFC Van Bendegom was wounded and treated by a medic. He was left behind when his unit's position was overrun, and he was captured.

According to other U.S. POWs released during Operation Homecoming, it was rumored that PFC Van Bendegom was taken from Pleiku Province into Cambodia and was treated at a field hospital. His name did not appear on the PRG died in captivity list. He was declared dead/body not recovered in May 1973.

In April 1989, a U.S. field team in Vietnam interviewed former officers assigned to the B-3 Front, the People's Army of Vietnam theater headquarters in command of operations in Pleiku Province. They were unable to provide any information on PFC Van Bendegom. During 1992, U.S. investigators in Vietnam received information describing the death of three Americans in captivity. One death was correlated to PFC Van Bendegom.

North Vietnam Ronald N. Sittner (0804) Charles Lane, Jr. (0805)

On August 23, 1967, First Lieutenant Lane and his aircraft commander, Captain Larry E. Corrigan (Case 0805), were the crewmen of an F-4 aircraft on a strike mission against the Yen Vien railroad yard. Their aircraft was hit by an air-to-air missile fired by a MIG-21 making it one of two aircraft in their flight downed by MIG-21 missiles. Their aircraft was believed to have crashed in Thai Nguyen Province, North Vietnam. Captain Corrigan was captured alive and was repatriated during Operation Homecoming.

Other members of their flight reported seeing three parachutes from the crewmen of the two downed aircraft. Three clear beepers were heard as well as one weak beeper which was believed to be associated with Lieutenant Lane. Captain Corrigan was the only individual shot down who was able to establish voice contact with those overhead.

Upon his release, Captain Corrigan reported seeing another individual moving around in his parachute, and he believed that individual to be Lieutenant Lane. Ha Noi press reported the aircraft downing but did not specify the number of crewmen captured. In August 1968, U.S. intelligence believed Lieutenant Lane had been captured alive and that he was in enemy custody, although his casualty status remained as missing in action.

The other aircraft's crew included Major Charles R. Tyler and Captain Ronald N. Sittner (0804). Major Tyler landed and was taken prisoner. He, too, was released alive during Operation Homecoming.

In October 1973, Lieutenant Lane's case was reviewed by the Department of Defense at the request of his next of kin, and his casualty status was changed to dead/body not recovered. Captain Sittner's case was reviewed at a later date, and he was also determined to be dead/body not recovered. Returning U.S. POWs were unable to confirm either individual alive in captivity in the northern Vietnamese prison system.

In November 1991, the Joint Task Force interviewed witnesses to the downing of the two F-4 aircraft and the reported sighting of either 3 or 4 parachutes. The location of their downing was determined to be in Tuyen Quang Province, not in Thai Nguyen Province. Witnesses reported the capture of two airmen and stated that they were unable to locate the other two crewmen until 1970 when the partial remains of one of the two was located. Local witnesses also stated that a nearby People's Republic of China military unit arrived at one of the crash sites and recovered the wreckage of one of the downed aircraft. They provided no other details about the incident. The Joint Task Force concluded that the reported partial remains may have correlated to the remains of Lieutenant Lane, who was not confirmed to have ejected from his aircraft but could have done so.

In April 1992, a U.S. team interviewed additional witnesses and recovered personal artifacts from both grave sites that did not correlate to the two airmen.

South Vietnam Kenneth L. Plumadore (0839)

On September 21, 1967, Lance Corporal Plumadore, a member of the 4th Marine Division, was wounded in action while engaging People's Army of Vietnam forces during Operation Kingfisher in the area of Dong Ha, Quang Tri Province. He and fourteen other members of his unit were left behind in the withdrawal from the battle area. When friendly forces retook the area they located fourteen dead Marines, two of bodies there were difficult to identity. Information later surfaced that one survivor was reported captured and was last seen being escorted North. Corporal Plumadore was declared dead/body not recovered in September 1967.

In April 1986, Vietnam returned remains of someone captured in the same engagement as the one during in which Corporal Plumadore became unaccounted-for. Information provided with the remains was that the remains belonged to an American serviceman captured at Con Thien who had died on September 27, 1967 at Vinh Linh, North Vietnam. Corporal Plumadore's records could not be used in remains identification because they were lost in an aircraft crash on October 2, 1967.

Subsequent to the return of the remains, U.S. intelligence located archival intelligence information, usually highly reliable, that indicated for the first time that someone, probably Plumadore, had been captured and taken North to Vinh Linh. He was last known alive on September 23rd in the area of Con Thien. He was the only individual who remained missing in the Con Thien area.

South Vietnam Paul L. Fitzgerald, Jr. Olin Hargrove (0867)

On October 17, 1967, Specialist Fitzgerald and Private First Class Hargrove were with their unit on a search and destroy mission in Binh Long Province. Their unit engaged a hostile force and suffered heavy losses. The two soldiers were last seen alive midway between U.S. forces and advancing Viet Cong. PFC Hargrove was reported wounded at that time.

In February 1972, a former Viet Cong reported observing one American captive in 1967 in the area where the two soldiers were lost. This report was thought to possibly correlate to one of the two missing soldiers. In December 1984, U.S. intelligence received reports about the recovery of U.S. remains from the general area where the two had last been seen.

Both soldiers were initially declared missing. Each was eventually

declared dead/body not recovered in March 1978. Neither individual was reported alive in the Vietnamese prison system.

North Vietnam James S, Morgan (0903) Kelly F. Cook James A. Crew (0904)

On November 10, 1967, Major Morgan and First Lieutenant Charles J. Honeycutt were the lead aircraft in a flight of two F-4 striking a target in Quang Binh Province. A forward air controller lost radio and radar contact with them at the point of their bomb release. Contact was also lost with the other F-4 crew, Lieutenant Colonel Cook and First Lieutenant Crew. On November 10, 1967, Radio Hanoi reported two F-4s were shot down on that date in Quang Binh Province.

All four airmen were initially reported missing in action. Returning U.S. POWs were unable to provide any sightings of any of them alive. However, one returning POW reported hearing a Radio Hanoi broadcast naming Lieutenant Honeycutt as one of the U.S. POWs held alive in captivity by North Vietnam. After the end of hostilities, the four pilots were declared dead/body not recovered based on a presumptive finding of death.

In May 1987, U.S. intelligence received information concerning the recovery of identification media and remains associated with Lieutenant Honeycutt. In December 1988, JCRC staff interviewed witnesses in Vietnam concerning Case 0903. They were taken to the alleged crash site and shown two purported graves which were excavated in April 1990. No remains were found.

U.S. investigators in Vietnam during March 1991 visited Le Ninh District and received information regarding the shoot down of Major Morgan's aircraft. Vietnam turned over the identity card of Lieutenant Honeycutt together with his remains.

Based on intensive investigation in Vietnam, information in Vietnamese archival records and witness statements, it appears that one crewman in each aircraft died in the shoot downs. Available information also indicates the likelihood that Major Morgan and Lieutenant Crew both perished in their aircraft, but both Lieutenant Honeycutt and Lieutenant Colonel Cook parachuted alive from their aircraft and reached the ground seriously wounded. Both were later reported to have died.

North Vietnam Herbert O. Brennan Douglas C. Condit (0928)

On November 26, 1967, Colonel Brennan and First Lieutenant Condit were the crew in one of two F-4C jet aircraft on a strike mission over North Vietnam. During their first pass over the target, their aircraft exploded causing the wreckage to land in the area of their target. There was no hostile fire noted at the time of their crash. There were no chutes or voice contact with the crewmen.

Search and rescue aircraft arrived and drew hostile fire from the crash site area. In addition, it appeared their signaling devices had been captured and were being used in an attempt to lure SAR aircraft into a trap.

Both crewmen were initially declared missing. During Operation Homecoming, neither was accounted-for as alive. Moreover, returning U.S. POWs were unable to confirm that Brennan and Condit were alive in captivity. Both were later declared dead/body not recovered.

U.S. investigators in Vietnam during November 1988 interviewed witnesses in Bo Trach District, Quang Binh Province. The team also located a crash site within 500 meters of Colonel Brennan's loss location and confirmed the wreckage as that of an F-4. The team was unable to locate any information regarding the crew. The team did learn that the aircraft was shot down while attacking a People's Army of Vietnam anti-aircraft unit that was providing security for an engineer road building unit. One witness stated Vietnamese officials had already recovered seven skeletal remains associated with U.S. aircraft lost in the area.

South Vietnam Michael Millner (0930)

On November 29, 1967, Staff Sergeant Millner, a member of Detachment B-34, 5th Special Forces Group, was with a provincial reconnaissance unit when it was attacked by a Viet Cong company approximately 35 kilometers north of Loc Ninh, Phuoc Long Province.

A member of his unit, Sergeant Paul Posse, later stated he saw Sergeant Millner being captured. When last seen he was not wounded. U.S. intelligence received a report in October 1974 concerning the sighting of a captured American circa October 1967 in the area Sergeant Millner was last seen, but it could not be correlated specifically to him.

Sergeant Millner was initially declared missing. In July 1974 he was declared dead/body not recovered. Returning U.S. POWs had no information about him.

Cambodia Robert H. Grzyb (0937)

In the late morning of December 11, 1967, a U.S. Army private assigned at Pleiku City, South Vietnam, reported to his unit that he, Mr. Grzyb, and two Koreans had been ambushed by the Viet Cong on the afternoon of December 10, 1967. Mr. Grzyb was reportedly wounded in the arm, and one of the Koreans was killed, when they were ambushed north of Pleiku City where they had gone to buy pigs.

A subsequent investigation revealed a Vietnamese police officer, a neighbor, and Mr. Grzyb departed Pleiku at noon on December 10th in a Vietnamese police jeep. It was located by an aircraft spotter late that afternoon at the village of Plei Pok 25 kilometers north of Pleiku. The damaged jeep was recovered, and its FM radio and battery had been removed. The body of the dead policeman was found there with a bullet wound in the head which had apparently been fired at close range. Plei Pok villagers said Mr. Grzyb and the policeman were ambushed by Viet Cong just outside their village after buying five small pigs for 500 Vietnamese dong, equivalent to approximately $4.00. The policeman was killed, and Mr. Grzyb was apparently abducted.

Further police investigation determined Mr. Grzyb, a former U.S. Army serviceman and unemployed U.S. civilian in Vietnam without proper identification at the time, had been arrested in Pleiku on September 30th by the Vietnamese National Police following the discharge of a pistol which blinded a young Vietnamese boy. Mr. Grzyb was attempting to sell the pistol to another serviceman at the time of the incident. A search of his residence led to the recovery of a .45 caliber sub-machine gun. Also during that time, he was wanted for the illegal sale of 384 cases of stolen U.S. Government C-rations. Mr. Grzyb was jailed and fined and was released from jail on November 11, 1967, at which time he told U.S. authorities he wanted to apply for Vietnamese citizenship. The American private who claimed he was with Mr. Grzyb was on an unauthorized absence from Pleiku at the time of the incident, having been confined to the city after his release from a U.S. military jail in November 1967. When captured, Mr. Grzyb never mentioned any Koreans with him. He said he was in the U.S. Army, wounded in the side when captured, and had been due to rotate from Vietnam the day after his capture.

Mr. Grzyb was first listed by Department of State and DIA in 1970 as unaccounted-for after receiving his file from JPRC. He was listed as a POW at the time of Operation Homecoming and, in January 1973, was listed by the PRG as having died in captivity.

Seven returning U.S. POWs described Mr. Grzyb's incarceration with them at a People's Army of Vietnam B-3 Theater of Operations prison along the Vietnam/Cambodia border where he died one evening late in 1968 while suffering from malaria and malnutrition. Wartime reports related his name as "Gzip" or "Gzeb." One wartime report from a Vietnam People's Army Captain described Mr. Grzyb's presence at the prison while suffering from malaria. Two other reported sightings of Americans in captivity were placed in Mr. Grzyb's file but, apparently, did not pertain to him.

North Vietnam Roger B. Innes Leonard M. Lee (0952)

On December 27, 1967, Lieutenant Commander Lee and Lieutenant JG Innes were crewmen of an F-4B on a strike mission over Nghe An Province. Their aircraft was seen on radar as it started its bomb run on target, but other flight members were unable to actually observe the aircraft during its bomb run. The aircraft disappeared and could not be located during a subsequent search. There were no chutes and no beepers.

In May 1972, a People's Army of Vietnam soldier described the downing of two U.S. aircraft in Quynh Luu District, Nghe An Province. He heard that one airman was killed and one was captured. The captured pilot was last seen being escorted north on Highway 1. This report was believed to be a possible correlation to this aircrew because it was the only loss in the area at that time.

Both crewmen were initially declared missing and, in April 1977, were declared dead/body not recovered. Neither airman was reported alive in the Vietnamese prison system by returning U.S. POWs.

South Vietnam Richard W. Fischer (0977)

On January 8, 1968, Lance Corporal Fisher was with an ambush team in Dien Ban District, south of Da Nang City, Quang Nam Province. He left his ambush site with a one-legged girl and was never seen again. A search and rescue party attempting to locate him was fired upon. A later search failed to locate any trace of him but an older local resident did say that an American had been taken prisoner. The non-commissioned officer in charge of the ambush was recommended for court-martial for permitting a member of the team to leave the site. In 1970, a former Vietnam People's Army Lieutenant Colonel provided information, possibly hearsay, that Corporal Fisher had been killed and buried.

Corporal Fisher was initially declared missing. In December 1978, he was declared dead/body not recovered. Returning U.S. POWs were unable to provide any information about him being alive in the Vietnamese prison system.

South Vietnam William D. Johnson (0997)

On August 19, 1968, Private First Class Johnson was a rifleman from the 4th Infantry Division on a search and destroy mission with his unit in the mountainous central highlands area of Sa Thay District, Kontum Province. His unit encountered hostile forces and six men were declared missing; four were last seen at the initial point of contact, one of whom was PFC Johnson. PFC Johnson was reported alive after the hostile fire had stopped.

The partially decomposing bodies of five of the six missing soldiers were later located. Their remains showed major destructive injuries associated with fragmentation munitions. PFC Johnson was not located with the others.

Returning U.S. POWs had no information on his eventual fate. In March 1979, he was declared killed in action/body not recovered based on a presumptive finding of death.

In 1974, DIA received a report of a possible collaborator seen in coastal Quang Ngai Province. The American was reportedly captured from a truck convoy, and two others with him had escaped. While not correlated to PFC Johnson, a copy of the report was placed in his file for unknown reasons.

North Vietnam Michael Dunn Norman E. Eidsmoe (1004) On January 26, 1968, First Lieutenant Dunn and Lieutenant Commander Eidsmoe were on a solo mission against Vinh Airfield. Their aircraft disappeared from radar contact approximately ten kilometers north of Vinh City, and both airmen were declared missing.

In April 1972, a former People's Army of Vietnam soldier reported observing an American POW in Nghe An Province in January 1968. The report was placed in the case files of those involved in the incident as only a possible correlation to Commander Eidsmoe. Several returning U.S. POWs reported hearing a name similar to his while in Son Tay Prison in November 1968, but it was never confirmed that he was alive.

Lieutenant Dunn was declared dead/body not recovered in November 1973. Commander Eidsmoe was declared dead in January 1978.

South Vietnam Henry F. Blood (1017)

Blood was a missionary with the Christian Missionary Alliance (CMA) in the South Vietnamese mountain town of Banmethuot. On February 1, 1968, the CMA compound was overrun by Vietnamese communist forces during the opening phase of the 1968 Tet Offensive. Another American civilian who was also captured and returned during Operation Homecoming, Michael D. Benge, described being held with Blood until July 1968 when Blood became ill, died and was buried near their prison camp in the Central Highlands.

At Operation Homecoming Blood's name appeared on the Provisional Revolutionary Government died in captivity list. The date of death was recorded as October 17, 1972.

Blood's burial site location was investigated in December 1990 by a U.S. field team. During that investigation, the Joint Casualty Resolution Center learned that Blood's grave had been opened in 1987. The remains recovered by Dac Lac Province security officials, which were reportedly Blood's remains, were given to U.S. officials in February 1988. U.S. records confirm there was a repatriation in April 1988, but the remains have not yet been identified.

South Vietnam Elizabeth "Betty" A. Olsen (1018)

Ms. Olsen was captured on February 1, 1968 at the Christian Missionary Alliance compound in Banmethuot City, South Vietnam. A returning POW, Michael Benge, reported Olsen was brought to his prison camp after capture. They were being taken on foot toward Cambodia when Olsen died. Benge buried her near the Cambodian border.

Olsen appeared at Operation Homecoming on the Provisional Revolution Government's died in captivity list; the date of death was September 26, 1968.

In December 1990, the Joint Casualty Resolution Center interviewed witnesses in Vietnam who described her burial near commo-liaison station T8 in Quang Duc Province, South Vietnam. Her remains have not yet been located.

South Vietnam Joseph S. Zawtocki Dennis W. Hammond (1042)

On February 8, 1968, Corporals Zawtocki and Hammond were captured in South Vietnam during the 1968 Tet Offensive. They were initially held with other U.S. POWs who were present when Zawtocki and Hammond died in captivity. Hammond's name appeared on the Provisional Revolutionary Government's died in captivity list, and his date of death was recorded as March 7, 1970. Both were later declared dead/body not recovered.

In August 1985, the remains of American POWs who died in captivity in South Vietnam in Quang Nam Province, the same prison camp where Hammond and Zawtocki were held, were repatriated by Vietnam. Zawtocki's remains were identified. The remains attributed to Corporal Hammond were determined to be the remains of a Southeast Asian Mongoloid. Based on all available information, the remains of those who died in this jungle prison had been recovered by Vietnamese officials during the 1970s.

South Vietnam Alan W. Gunn Wade L. Groth Harry W. Brown Jerry L Roe (1046)

On February 12, 1968, Gunn, Groth, Brown and Roe were members of a UH-1H on a night medical evacuation flight. Their aircraft disappeared in Darlac Province. A search and rescue effort failed to locate them. The four crewmen were initially declared missing.

In July 1971, a Vietnam People's Army defector identified a photograph of First Lieutenant Brown as an individual he had seen at a POW camp near Vinh City in August 1970. U.S. POW returnees were never able to confirm that Lieutenant Brown and the other crewmen.

In July 1974, the wreckage of the UH-1H was located by a woodsman, but there was no trace of the crewmen. All four crewmen were declared dead/body not recovered on different dates between October 1973 and September 1978.

South Vietnam Robert W. Hunt (1065)

On February 28, 1968, Corporal Hunt was a member of an M-41 tank crew in combat with hostile forces in Hoc Mon, a suburb of Saigon. He was last seen standing on the tank when it took a direct hit from two rocket propelled grenades. The next day friendly forces recovered the bodies of two tank crewmen, but there was no sign of Corporal Hunt. He was declared missing.

In January 1973, the Provisional Revolution Government reported the death of PFC James J. Scuiter while in captivity. However, PFC Scuiter's remains were located and recovered from the scene of the combat where Corporal Hunt was declared missing. It was believed that the PRG had misidentified the remains.

Corporal Hunt was declared dead/body not recovered in September 1978. He was not identified alive in the Vietnamese prison system.

In 1975 U.S. interviewers located a former soldier from the People's Army 84th Regiment, 9th Infantry Division. He described himself as the individual who had fired the rocket propelled grenades which disabled the M-41 tank and stated that an African- American had been captured on that date.

Since 1985, U.S. intelligence has received several reports about an African-American killed in action and buried in the Hoc Mon area. While not identified as Corporal Hull, these reports are similar to the location and circumstances pertaining to his loss.

South Vietnam James E. Hamm (1086)

On March 14, 1968, First Lieutenant Hamm and Major Gary L. Tresmer were flying an F-4D, one in a flight of two aircraft on a close air support mission over Thua Thien Province. Their aircraft was hit by hostile fire on the fourth pass over the target. Both crewmen ejected and good chutes were seen. Search and rescue forces established radio contact with the crewmen, but rescue attempts were hampered by a large hostile force in the area. Lieutenant Hamm radioed that he thought he had a broken leg, but radio contact was eventually lost with him. Major Tresmer was subsequently rescued alive.

In June 1971, a U.S. Army unit located the back seat from the F-4D.

It was confirmed to be from Lieutenant Hamm's aircraft because it was a seat installed in his F-4 after the aircraft was obtained from Iran and issued to the 366th Tactical Fighter Wing.

Lieutenant Hamm was initially declared missing in action. On February 2, 1974 he was declared dead/body not recovered based on a presumptive finding of death. Returning U.S. POWs were unable to provide information on his eventual fate.

During April and May 1992, U.S. investigators in Vietnam interviewed witnesses concerning this incident. One witness, a woman from a unit on the scene, described having approached a wounded pilot who pointed his pistol at her. She shot and killed the pilot. She turned over the pilot's wrist watch, pistol and other material to members of a nearby unit of the Vietnam People's Army who then retrieved the pilot's body and buried it.

South Vietnam James M. Ray (1093)

Private First Class Ray was captured in South Vietnam on March 18, 1968. He is reliably reported to have died in captivity in 1969. In January 1973, the Provisional Revolutionary Government reported that he died in captivity on November 6, 1969. After Operation Homecoming, he was declared dead/body not recovered based on information from returning U.S. POWs.

South Vietnam Walter A. Cichon (1112)

Specialist Cichon was a member of the 4th Infantry Division which encountered People's Army of Vietnam forces in Kontum Province on March 30, 1968. He was hit in the head while moving up a hill. A member of his unit found him, and he had a gash above the ear and a hole in the back of his head. He was not moving and had turned white. Believing that he was dead, his unit pulled back, and he was left behind. He was declared missing in action.

In April 1968, the U.S. Army's 525th Military Intelligence Group forwarded information from two former North Vietnamese Army soldiers who reported that their 320th Regiment had captured an American soldier in Kontum Province in March 1968. The soldier had a head wound and was taken to facility T-3 in the tri-border area of Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia. Facility T-3 was known by U.S. intelligence to be a commo-liaison way station. This report was believed to possibly correlate to Cichon.

U.S. intelligence later obtained a document which described the capture of an American on March 30, 1968 in the Chu Tang area by elements of unit K-7. The American was taken to a surgical station of Group 21, a designator of the 1st Division to which the 66th and 320th Regiments belonged. Unit K-7 has been associated with the 7th Battalion, 66th Regiment. This report was believed to possibly correlate to the capture of Cichon.

In January 1972, DIA changed its internal casualty status for Cichon and listed him as a POW, although the U.S. Army continued to list him as missing in action. During Operation Homecoming, returning U.S. POWs were unable to confirm his precise fate. In October 1974, he was declared dead/body not recovered based on a presumptive finding of death.

In December 1990, U.S. investigators visited Sa Thay District, Gia Lai-Kon Tum Province as part of a joint U.S./Vietnamese investigation team. They interviewed witnesses in the area where Cichon was last seen who had served with People's Army of Vietnam forces during the war years. Medical personnel who served in the area described an American brought to the 66th Regiment treatment station in 1968. The information appeared to correlate to Cichon. Medical personnel from Hospital V84 also described an American with a head wound whom arrived at the B3 Theater Headquarters treatment station and who seemed to resemble Cichon. These witnesses also described a half dozen American POWs brought into their hospital. They were, however, unable to describe the precise fate of each American and could not provide the names of the six or seven Americans taken to this hospital.

South Vietnam John W. Held (1131)

On April 17, 1968, Captain Held was the pilot of an A-37A scrambled from Bien Hoa Air Base for a mission in Phuoc Long Province. His aircraft was hit by hostile ground fire, and Captain Held ejected and landed approximately 300 meters north of the aircraft's crash site. Rescue forces landed and located his parachute in trees, but no one was in the parachute. There were foot prints beneath the parachute and four trails leading from the area. The search team fanned out and searched the area but could not locate any sign of Captain Held. Aircraft hovered over the area for five hours but were unsuccessful in locating him. Later, a voice that sounded Vietnamese broadcast from his radio, and these transmissions continued until April 19th, but it was never followed by the proper authentication signal. Captain Held was initially declared missing in action.

In January 1975, U.S. intelligence received a report of a wartime sighting of three Americans and one Korean being moved north along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. This report was filed in Captain Held's file although the description of the three Americans did not appear to correlate to Captain Held.

After the end of hostilities, Captain Held was declared dead/body not recovered based on a presumptive finding of death. Returning U.S. POWs had no information on his precise fate.

In March 1992, U.S. investigators in Vietnam traveled to Bu Dang District, Song Be Province and interviewed three witnesses who described locating a dead pilot in the area where Captain Held landed. They also located an apparent crash site, however, the witnesses provided different accounts of the recovery of the body, and the investigators were unable to rule out the possibility that one of more of the tribesmen had been involved in the pilot's death. The team was unable to locate any human remains.

South Vietnam Walter R. Schmidt, Jr. (1205)

On January 9, 1968, Lieutenant Schmidt's A-4E aircraft was shot down by hostile ground fire over the A Shau Valley in Thua Thien Province, South Vietnam. He ejected and landed safely and established voice contact with search and rescue forces to whom he reported that he had a hurt hand and a possible broken leg. SAR forces observed him on the ground and established that enemy forces were within 20 meters of his location.

Lieutenant Schmidt was carried as a POW at the time of operation Homecoming and was declared dead/body not recovered after the end of hostilities. Returning U.S. POWs were unable to provide any information on his fate.

Joint Casualty Resolution Center investigations in the A Shau Valley during August 1989 failed to locate any witnesses who could provide information on the crash site or the reported capture of Lieutenant Schmidt. They were also unable to locate any evidence about his aircraft or his grave site.