(WBBM NEWSRADIO) – The remains of a U.S. soldier who died as a POW in the Pacific Theater of World War II are coming home to the Chicago area, with a funeral planned for later this year.
Forensics experts have identified the remains of Pfc. Harry Jerele, who was from Berkeley, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency said in a news release Thursday.
Jerele was 26 when he died as a prisoner of war in December 1942 after being captured by the Japanese in the Philippines earlier that year, officials said.
The suburban man was among those reported captured when Bataan fell. Prisoners were subjected to the infamous, 65-mile “Bataan Death March” before being held at the Cabanatuan POW camp, where more than 2,500 POWs perished, officials said.
Jerele was buried in a common grave, but the remains of soldiers were disinterred and transported to Manila. In 2020, unidentified remains were taken to an agency laboratory, and the latest DNA technology was used to make an identification.
Pfc. Jerele will be buried on Oct. 6 in Elwood, where the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery is located.
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