Two Americans alive in Hanoi

Two unrepatriated Americans from the Vietnam War were seen repeatedly starting in 1974 at the office in charge of US POW records and remains -- Office 22, Group 875, Department of Military Justice, General Political Directorate, Headquarters Ministry of Defense at No. 3 Duong Thanh Street, Hanoi.

The source of the sightings (and detailed forensic sketches of the men) was one of America’s most prized defectors from Vietnam. Tran Vien Loc was nicknamed the “Mortician” for his work preparing American remains Hanoi planned to trade back to the US. His information was corroborated by other intelligence and he passed a polygraph examination on his information, including the sightings of the Americans in Hanoi.

The Mortician later identified one of the men as Bobby Garwood, an American Marine who cooperated with the communists and returned home after the war. Declassified Pentagon records reveal that a senior Vietnamese official who dealt with the US on POW/MIA issues undoubtedly knew the names of the other two, remaining Americans – but never revealed their existence to America, let alone their names.

This may be because Vietnam considered the men “progressives” who had requested “asylum.” But the men were closely supervised. The Mortician (and other sources) reported he had been told there were more such Americans who had been secretly processed and kept by Hanoi – some were said to work as aircraft technicians.

Bill Bell, the leading Vietnam POW/MIA expert (and advisor to the POW Investigative Project), concluded that one of the unrepatriated Americans in Hanoi might be Charles Duke, a civilian POW/MIA. The second might be either Kit Mark, Duke's buddy, or Jimmy Malone, an Army radioman captured by the communists in 1966. However, these are educated guesses. Hanoi knows the answer but refuses to provide it.

Jane Gaylor, the mother of Charles Duke, died without learning the fate of her son. The families of many other POW/MIAs who might be one of the men reported by the Mortician continue to seek answers on the fates of their loved ones.