LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A U.S. Army soldier from Kentucky who died in the Korean War will be buried after his remains were recently identified.

U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Raymond E. Hall was from Mountain Ash in Whitley County. He was a member of Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment for the 24th Infantry Division. 

Hall was reported missing in action on July 31, 1950 at the age of 40 after being captured by enemy forces while fighting near Sunchon. Hall was among 65 prisoners of war who were executed during the Suncheon Tunnel Massacre, according to a news release. The remains of the men were found by U.S. forces the following day and taken to the United Nations Military Cemetery for temporary interment.

Hall was initially identified by FBI fingerprint comparison at the cemetery, but Pyongyang had to be evacuated due to enemy activity and Hall's remains were not recovered. After the war in 1954, the countries agreed to exchange war dead.   

But Hall's remains, which previously had been identified, couldn't be connected because there weren't any clothing, personal effects or identification. 

The solider was accounted for by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency on May 10, 2024 after his remains were exhumed in Aug. 2017 from the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific for laboratory analysis and identification. The process included DNA samples from family members closely related to the missing soldier.

Hall will be interred on Oct. 21 at Calverton National Cemetery in New York. Maloney's Funeral Home will perform a graveside service. 

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