Korean War soldier from Hazel Park accounted for over 70 years after his death
The remains of a Korean War soldier have been identified as a man from Hazel Park, Michigan, who was killed in action in 1950, the military said on Monday.
United States Army Private First Class William A. Wheeler, 18, was a member of H Company, 2nd Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action on Sept. 1, 1950, after his unit "engaged in combat actions" with the North Korean People's Army in the area of Yongsan, South Korea, according to the .
The Army later determined Wheeler was killed in action on Oct. 25, 1950.
Chinese Communist Forces in 1953 turned over remains to the United Nations Command during an effort known as Operation Glory, according to military officials. The remains were allegedly recovered from prisoner of war camps, United Nations cemeteries and isolated burial sites.
One set of remains, designated by the military in 1953 as Unknown X-181, was buried in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii. In 2017, military personnel dug up the remains as part of the Korean War Disinterment Project. The remains were sent the remains to a lab for analysis, officials said.
Scientists used dental and DNA analysis, and studied the bones of the remains to identify Unknown X-181 as Wheeler. He was accounted for on Aug. 27, 2024, nearly 74 years after he was declared dead. His family has since been notified.
The military said Wheeler would be buried in Troy, Michigan, sometime this year.