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Body mistakenly identified as WWII soldier

Posted at 11:28 PM, Apr 19, 2022
and last updated 2022-05-05 11:29:02-04

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. (WXYZ) — On April 19, WXYZ ran a story about the Department of Defense identifying a body as that of a soldier who died in World War II.

The body was identified as U.S. Pvt. Alfred R. Ricke, who went to France during World War II. We spoke to members of his family.

On May 5, the U.S. Army issued a statement saying that the body was not actually Ricke's, and the U.S. Army and Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency are still trying to identify and locate his remains.

"On Apr. 21, Mr. Greg Gardner, Chief, Past Conflicts and Repatriation Branch, U.S. Army Human Resources Command notified Pvt. Ricke's primary next-of-kin that her father has not been accounted for. Gardner also expressed the Army’s regret about this unfortunate misunderstanding," a statement reads