Department of Defense Identifies Remains of Corporal Marvin D. Actkinson who Was Killed in North Korea
Last week, the Department of Defense's Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced that the remains of a U.S. serviceman from Sudan have been accounted for.
Army Cpl. Marvin D. Actkinson was 18 years old when he was Killed in Action in the Korean War. According to the DPAA, Cpl. Actkinson was a part of the U.S. Army's Company B, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action on December 2, 1950, after his unit was attacked by enemy forces as they attempted to withdraw near the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea. Following the battle, his remains could not be recovered.
Actkinson was a junior at Sudan High School in 1949 and he played on the football team. Listen to Vickie Ray Williams on the December 13, 2021 edition of "Sunrise LBK" on KFYO:
Just over three years ago, the North Korean government provided the U.S. additional artifacts from the Korean War. This was one month following a meeting between then-President Donald Trump and North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un. According to the DPAA, on July 27, 2018, North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The remains arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on August 1, 2018, and were transferred to the DPAA laboratory for identification.
To identify Actkinson’s remains, scientists from DPAA used anthropological and isotope analysis, as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), Y chromosome DNA (Y-STR) and autosomal DNA (auSTR) analysis.
Actkinson’s name is recorded on the American Battle Monuments Commission's Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, along with the others who are still missing from the Korean War. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
The DPAA notes that Actkinson will be buried in Colorado City, Texas. Additional details are pending.
KFYO News thanks Vickie Ray Williams for providing the photos of Marvin Actkinson that you see in this article.
Complete Release from the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency Concerning Cpl. Marvin D. Actkinson:
PRESS RELEASE | Dec. 10, 2021
WASHINGTON – The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that Army Cpl. Marvin D. Actkinson, 18, of Sudan, Texas, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for Oct. 1, 2021.
In late 1950, Actkinson was a member of Company B, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action on Dec. 2, 1950, after his unit was attacked by enemy forces as they attempted to withdraw near the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea. Following the battle, his remains could not be recovered.
On July 27, 2018, following the summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un in June 2018, North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The remains arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018, and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for identification.
To identify Actkinson’s remains, scientists from DPAA used anthropological and isotope analysis, as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), Y chromosome DNA (Y-STR) and autosomal DNA (auSTR) analysis.
Actkinson’s name is recorded on the American Battle Monuments Commission’s Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, along with the others who are still missing from the Korean War. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Actkinson will be buried in Colorado City, Texas. The date has yet to be determined.
For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
To see the most up-to-date statistics on DPAA recovery efforts for those unaccounted for from the Korean War, go to the Korean War fact sheet on the DPAA website at: https://www.dpaa.mil/Resources/Fact-Sheets/Article-View/Article/569610/progress-on-korean-war-personnel-accounting/