WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Sgt. William L. Harper, 21, of White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, who was killed during the Korean War, was accounted for Aug. 7, 2025.
Harper's family recently received their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.
In early 1951, Harper was a member of D Battery, 82nd Antiaircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action on Feb. 13, after the Battle of Hoengsong, South Korea. He was captured and transported to Prisoner of War Camp 1 at Changsong, North Korea, where he died in August 1951.
In 1954, during Operation Glory, North Korea unilaterally turned over remains to the United States, including one set, designated Unknown X-14238 Operation Glory. The remains were reportedly recovered from prisoner of war camps, United Nations cemeteries and isolated burial sites. At the time, the remains could not be identified as Harper, and he was declared non-recoverable. The remains were subsequently buried as an Unknown in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu.
In July 2018, the DPAA proposed a plan to disinter 652 Korean War Unknowns from the Punchbowl. On Feb. 10, 2020, DPAA personnel disinterred Unknown X-14238 as part of Phase 2 of the Korean War Disinterment Plan and sent the remains to the DPAA laboratory for analysis.
To identify Harper’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental, anthropological, and radio isotope analysis, as well as a chest radiograph comparison and circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA analysis, mitochondrial genome sequencing data, and nuclear single nucleotide polymorphism testing.
Harper’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the Punchbowl, 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.
Harper will be buried in his hometown on a date 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 Accounting page on the DPAA website at: https://dpaa-mil.sites.crmforce.mil/dpaaFamWebKorean.
For additional information on the War 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.
Harper’s personnel profile can be viewed at https://dpaa-mil.sites.crmforce.mil/dpaaProfile?id=a0Jt000000xknuKEAQ.