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Name: John Eugene Bodenschatz, Jr. Rank/Branch: E2/US MarinesUnit: 1st Platoon, Company K, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Division Date of Birth: 29 May 1946 Home City of Record: Los Angeles CA Date of Loss: 28 August 1966 Country of Loss: South Vietnam Loss Coordinates: 155800N 1081500E (BT061673) Status (in 1973): Missing in Action Category: 2 Acft/Vehicle/Ground: ground Refno: 0439 Other Personnel in Incident: Robert L. Babula; Robert C. Borton Jr.; DennisR. Carter (all missing)
Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project 15 March 1991 from one or more ofthe following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources, correspondencewith POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W.NETWORK 1998.
SYNOPSIS:
The fire team departed at 3:00 a.m. on August 28, and were giveninstructions for use of the pyrotechnics they were carrying as signalingdevices. They were further instructed to relocate in the same general areaor return to their platoon patrol base in the event their ambush site wascompromised, and finally to return no later than 9:00 a.m. that morning.
When the fire team failed to return as scheduled, an immediate search of thearea was conducted by Company K with negative results. During the period of August 29-31, the Battalion made a dovetailed search of the entire areacovering all possible routes of egress in the event the team members hadbeen captured.
Indigenous personnel in the area were questioned, but no evidence wasuncovered which gave any clues. Villagers were questioned and a search ofthe area continued. On September 4, Company K discovered part of an Americanwrist watch and PFC Bodenschatz' two identification tags in the vicinity ofBT 061673. The search was intensified in that area, including the use ofheavy engineer equipment in an effort to locate graves, but no further trace was found.
On September 13, the Battalion cordoned off grid squares BT 0567, 0667,0566, 0666 and all inhabitants were assembled, screened, and interrogated byan ARVN interrogation team from Hoa Vang District Headquarters. Three VietCong suspects were retained for further questioning, however, no additionalinformation was obtained concerning the four Marines.
The Battalion commander's final determination was that the four Marines wereprobably captured.
In 1975, information was declassified that indicated that since the fireteam's disappearance, Marine headquarters had received two reports sightingthree to four Americans being displayed in villages south of the area inwhich the fire team disappeared.
A Christmas card received by Company K/3/1 1st Marine Division, sent by Babula's mother and sister, stated that they had recently received news thatBabula was a prisoner of war. None of the four, however, returned in the general prisoner release in 1973.
Since the war ended, the Defense Department has received over 10,000 reportsrelating to the men still unaccounted for in Southeast Asia, yet concludesthat no actionable evidence has been received that would indicate Americansare still alive in Southeast Asia. A recent Senate investigation indicatesthat most of these reports were dismissed without just cause, and that thereis every indication that Americans remained in captivity far after the warended, and may be alive today.
The fate of the four Marines on the fire team on 28 August 1966 remains uncertain. What is clear, however, is that it's time we learned the truthabout our missing and brought them home.
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