All 4 U.S. soldiers who went missing in Lithuania found dead, Army says

CBS News

01-04-2025

All four U.S. soldiers who had been at the center of a recovery mission in Lithuania for
a week
after their
armored vehicle sank
in a peat bog near the border with Belarus have been found dead, the Army said. The fourth missing soldier's body was recovered Tuesday, a day after the three other soldiers were found, the Army's Europe and Africa Command said in a statement.
All of the soldiers were assigned to the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division and were permanently stationed at Fort Stewart in Georgia.
Three of the four soldiers were identified by the military Tuesday as Sgt. Jose Duenez, Jr. 25, of Joliet, Illinois; Sgt. Edvin F. Franco, 25, of Glendale, California; and Pfc. Dante D. Taitano, 21, of Dededo, Guam. The identity of the fourth U.S. Army soldier is being withheld pending confirmation of notification of next of kin, the 3rd Infantry Division said in a statement.
"This loss is simply devastating," said Maj. Gen. Christopher Norrie, the 3rd Infantry Division commanding general, in a statement. "These men were honored Soldiers of the Marne Division. We are wrapping our arms around the families and loved ones of our Soldiers during incredibly difficult time."
The soldiers went missing last Tuesday while conducting a mission to repair and tow an immobilized tactical vehicle. The incident is being investigated by the Army and Lithuanian authorities.
The soldiers' submerged armored recovery vehicle was found by the Army and Lithuanian authorities Wednesday. The command said the vehicle was removed from a peat bog early Monday morning. In an update from over the weekend, the command said the vehicle was under at least 15 feet of water, clay-like mud and silt.
The fourth U.S. Army Soldier assigned to 1st ABCT, 3rd Inf. Div. was found deceased in Lithuania in Tuesday afternoon local time. The soldier went missing in the early morning hours of March 25, and his vehicle was recovered from a peat bog in the early morning of March 31, the 3rd Infantry Division said.
The discovery came after recovery dogs from Lithuania and the nearby country of Estonia joined the search effort, the command said earlier Tuesday. The dogs were placed in a U.S. Navy inflatable boat with the hope of picking up any trace scents from below the surface of the bog.
Hundreds of service members from the Army, Navy and the militaries of Lithuania and Poland helped in the effort to bring the 63-ton M88A2 Hercules armored recovery vehicle to the surface, the command said. Lithuanian civilian agencies also contributed to the effort, with the command calling the unstable ground conditions around the submerged vehicle an "engineering challenge."
"I can't say enough about the support our Lithuanian Allies have provided us," Gen. Christopher Donahue, commander of U.S. Army Europe and Africa, said in Tuesday's statement. "We have leaned on them, and they, alongside our Polish and Estonian Allies — and our own Sailors, Airmen and experts from the Corps of Engineers — have enabled us to find and bring home our Soldiers. This is a tragic event, but it reinforces what it means to have Allies and friends."
Excavators, pumps and several hundred tons of gravel and earth were moved to the search area near Pabradė, close to the Lithuania-Belarus border, to pull up the vehicle.
Norrie said that the soldiers who died in the incident were family.
"This loss is simply devastating," said Norrie Tuesday in a statement. "...No words can capture the depth of sorrow or gratitude we feel for their service."
The three soldiers identified were among 3,500 who deployed in January to various locations across Poland and the Baltic states for a nine-month rotation as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve in support of NATO.
Duenez was an M1 Abrams tank system maintainer with over seven years in the Army. He arrived at Fort Stewart in February 2022. Duenez had previously been deployed to Poland in 2021 and Germany in 2022.
Capt. Madyson K. Wellens, Diesel Forward Support Troop commander, said in a statement that Duenez greeted "every challenge with a smile and a readiness to support anyone who required assistance."
Franco, 25, was an M1 Abrams tank system maintainer who served in the Army for over six years. He arrived at Fort Stewart in 2019. He had been deployed to Korea in 2020 and Germany in 2022.
"Edvin was a friend whose influence touched so many," said Wellens.
Taitano, 21, was a M1 Abrams tank system maintainer on his first deployment. He served in the Army for nearly two years. He arrived at Fort Stewart in October 2023, following his entry training.
Taitano "constantly brought the team together with his charisma and laughter," said Cpt. Matthew Lund, Darkhorse Troop commander, in a statement.
Lithuania's President Gitanas Nausėda expressed his condolences to President Trump and the U.S. on social media.
"@realDonaldTrump, Lithuania mourns together with the American nation," Nausėda
said on social platform X
. "Please accept my heartfelt condolences, as well as those of the Lithuanian people, to you, the loved ones of those who lost their lives, and all the people of the United States of America. During this difficult time, our thoughts and prayers are with you."
Lithuania is located northwest of
Belarus
, the country led by
Alexander Lukashenko
, a key ally of Russian President
Vladimir Putin
.
Lithuania, like its northern neighbor Latvia, joined NATO in 2004. Southwest of Lithuania are the Russian province of Kaliningrad and Poland, another NATO member.
The Baltic Sea is located to the west of Lithuania.