WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Pfc. Edward J. Kramer, 23, of Detroit, Michigan, killed during World War II, was accounted for on April 23, 2025.
Kramer’s family recently received their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.
In the winter of 1942, Kramer was assigned to Company H, 2nd Battalion, 126th Infantry Regiment, 32d Infantry Division, and deployed in present day Papua New Guinea. He was reportedly killed in action on Dec. 27 near Buna Village while fighting the Japanese. His remains were not recovered after the war.
Following the war, the American Graves Registration Service, the military unit responsible for investigating and recovering missing American personnel in the Pacific Theater, conducted extensive searches of dense jungle and swamps in Papua New Guinea. One set of remains, later designated X-76 Finschhafen #2, was recovered from the Buna Village Cemetery on Dec. 31, 1942. The remains could not be identified and were subsequently interred in the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial. On Nov. 2, 1949, Kramer was declared nonrecoverable.
In January 2017, DPAA personnel exhumed Unknown X-76 Finschhafen #2 from the MACM and sent the remains to the DPAA Laboratory for review and analysis.
To identify Kramer’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA analysis, mitochondrial genome sequencing data, and nuclear single nucleotide polymorphism analysis.
Kramer’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, along with others still missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Kramer will be buried in Holly, Michigan in October 2025.
For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
DPAA is grateful to the American Battle Monuments Commission for their partnership in this mission.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for Americans who went missing while serving their country, visit the DPAA website at www.dpaa.mil or on social media at www.facebook.com/dodpaa, https://www.linkedin.com/company/dodpaa, https://www.instagram.com/dodpaa/, or https://x.com/dodpaa.
Kramer’s personnel profile can be viewed at PFC EDWARD J KRAMER - Service Member Profile
Read Kramer's initial ID announcement here: Kramer.