ARROYA-BAEZ, GERASIMO
Remains Returned 20 March 1985
Name: Gerasimo Arroya-Baez
Rank/Branch: E6/US Army
Unit: MAT IV-49, MACV Advisory Team 71
Date of Birth: 05 February 1931
Home City of Record: Maunabo, Puerto Rico
Date of Loss: 24 March 1969
Country of Loss: South Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 093339N 1054938E (WR908569)
Status (In 1973): Prisoner of War
Category: 1
Acft/Vehicle/Ground: Ground
Other Personnel In Incident: Richard L. Bowers (prisoner of war)
Refno: 1414
REMARKS: 720822 DIC - ON PRG DIC LIST
Source: Compiled from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S.
Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families,
published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK in 2020.
SYNOPSIS: Gerasimo Arroya-Baez and Richard L. Bowers, two U.S. advisors, two
other Americans and a number of ARVN personnel were on duty at Tam Soc
operating base in Ba Xuayn Province, near Saigon. The base personnel awoke
early on the morning of March 24, 1969, to find the unit under attack by
what was estimated to be a company-sized Viet Cong force and a heavy weapons
sections using mortars, automatic weapons, small arms and B40 rockets.
Richard Bowers was heard on the radio calling for help when the radio went
dead. A relief force was sent out to help. When it arrived, all the
Vietnamese defenders of Tam Due Operations Base were found dead, along with
two Americans. Bowers and Arroya-Baez, the American advisors, were not to be
found.
A Vietnamese civilian who had been captured and later escaped stated that
Bowers and Arroya-Baez had been taken prisoner, dressed in black pajamas,
and were seen being led off into the jungle. Numerous intelligence reports
were received concerning two U.S. POWs fitting the descriptions of Bowers
and Arroya-Baez, that were seen by ARVN and VC personnel at different times
and locations after their capture, some conflicting. A Vietnamese who was
captured and escaped stated that Arroya-Baez was alive but that Bowers had
been shot the day of capture. The combination of the most credible reports
indicate that Bowers and Arroya-Baez were captured during the battle, but in
the confusion were able to escape. The were located by the Viet Cong,
however, on the same evening. The next day, a VC guard killed Bowers after
he had again attempted to escape.
After it was determined that Bowers was dead, the guard and Arroya-Baez
departed with the rest of their group and were forced to travel a number of
days by foot and sampan.
The files of Bowers and Arroya-Baez are still classified. Gerasimo
Arroya-Baez's name appeared on the "Died in Captivity" list provided by the
Provisional Government of Vietnam in 1973, and it was stated that he died in
captivity August 22, 1972. Fourteen years later, in March 1985, the
Vietnamese "discovered" the remains of Arroya-Baez and returned them to the
U.S. They have yet to "discover" the fate or remains of Richard Lee Bowers.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
01/2020
https://dpaa.secure.force.com/dpaaProfile?id=a0Jt000000ukCtyEAE
On April 8, 1985, the Central Identification Laboratory-Hawaii (CILHI,
now DPAA) identified the remains of Sergeant First Class
Gerasimo Arroyo-Baez, missing from the Vietnam War.
Sergeant First Class Arroyo-Baez entered the U.S. Army from
Puerto Rico and was the team medic with Advisory Team 71,
Military Assistance Command, Vietnam. On March 24, 1969, he was
captured when the Tam Soc Outpost in Ba Xuyen Province, South
Vietnam, was overrun by the Viet Cong. He died of illness on or
about August 22, 1972, while in enemy custody at a POW camp in
Phong Dinh Province. His remains were reportedly buried near the
camp. In 1985, the Vietnamese government repatriated human
remains to the U.S. that were eventually identified as those of
SFC Arroyo-Baez.
Sergeant First Class Arroyo-Baez is memorialized on the Courts
of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
If you are a family member of this serviceman, you may contact your casualty office representative to learn more about your service member.