Three of four US soldiers missing in Lithuania are found dead
The Lithuanian authorities received a report on Tuesday that the soldiers went missing on an expansive training ground in the eastern city of Pabradė, near the border with Belarus. The soldiers were on a tactical training exercise when they and their vehicle were reported missing, the US army said.
'We stand in grief with the families and loved ones of these extraordinary 'Dogface Soldiers' during this unimaginable time,' said Maj Gen Christopher Norrie, 3rd infantry division commander. 'But the search isn't finished until everyone is home. Words cannot express our gratitude to those still working around the clock during these extensive search and recovery efforts and your unwavering commitment not to rest until all are found.'
The bodies of the three soldiers were recovered after a massive six-day effort by US, Polish and Lithuanian armed forces and authorities to dig the M88 Hercules armoured recovery vehicle out of a peat bog.
Search and rescue teams worked with heavy equipment and excavators to remove silt from the water before eventually towing out the vehicle early on Monday.
'Three US army soldiers assigned to 1st Armored brigade combat team, 3rd infantry division were found deceased in Lithuania today, 31 March,' US Army Europe and Africa's public affairs office said in a statement. The soldiers' identities were being 'withheld pending notification of next of kin', it added.
Hundreds of local and foreign troops and other rescue workers, including engineers and divers, had been involved in a rescue operation to recover the armoured vehicle.
Lithuanian armed forces provided military helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft, unmanned aerial systems and search and rescue personnel. They brought in additional excavators, sluice and slurry pumps, other heavy construction equipment, technical experts and several hundred tonnes of gravel and earth to help the recovery.
US Navy divers were able to manoeuvre through thick layers of mud, clay and sediment 'with zero visibility' to reach the 63-tonne vehicle on Sunday evening and find two points to attach steel cables, according to the command.
The command said that during the effort to pull out the vehicle, it began to lose traction, so additional heavy dozers were brought in and attached to provide additional grip. The vehicle was pulled free after about two hours.
The US Navy dive team is searching the area using radar for the missing fourth soldier.
Maj Gen Curtis Taylor, commander of Task Force Iron and the 1st Armored division, thanked the 'heroic efforts' of those involved in the search and recovery. The US Army and Lithuanian authorities are investigating what caused the incident.
Lithuania, a Nato and EU member, hosts more than 1,000 US troops stationed on a rotational basis.
Agence France-Presse and Associated Press contributed to this report
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The Guardian
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Idaho sniper's twisted motive for firefighter ambush revealed - and the chilling farewell letter to his father
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Wess Roley, 20, the man accused of shooting two Idaho firefighters dead, grew increasingly agitated while attempting to become a firefighter himself On June 29 - according to Sheriff Norris - Roley used gasoline, lighters and flint to ignite a series of fires on Canfield Mountain to trigger an emergency response, and then opened fire on firefighters who asked him to move his vehicle before taking his own life Roley attempted to enlist in the Army twice, but both attempts were unsuccessful as he 'failed to follow through on tasks and appointments, eventually being disqualified by the US Army' 'The contact became agitated and frustrated. He left there in a very frustrated and agitated state.' During the conference, officials also revealed evidence suggesting the attack was premeditated - including drawings found in Roley's home depicting a mountain parking lot, a shotgun being fired and a figure aiming a rifle at their own chin. A haunting farewell note addressed to his father was also found inside Roley's truck - signed by him alongside two symbols resembling runes associated with Nazi ideology. 'Tomorrow, I shall go to battle,' Roley wrote to his father. 'If I survive, it would be with upmost dishonor. I bid thee farewell.' On June 29 - according to Sheriff Norris - Roley used gasoline, lighters and flint to ignite a series of fires on Canfield Mountain to trigger an emergency response. He then opened fire on firefighters who asked him to move his vehicle, and later shot at others from a tree before taking his own life. 'This was a premeditated ambush, a pure act of evil against the people we look to for help,' Norris said on Tuesday. Kootenai County Battalion Chief Frank Harwood, 42, and Coeur d'Alene Fire Department Battalion Chief John Morrison, 52, were killed in the attack. Then, just one month before the shootings, Roley visited a Coeur d'Alene fire station to inquire about becoming a firefighter - but grew irritated upon learning the requirements of the process (pictured: Roley and his mother, Heather Cuchiara) During the conference, officials also revealed evidence suggesting the attack was premeditated - including drawings found in Roley's (pictured) home depicting a mountain parking lot, a shotgun being fired and a figure aiming a rifle at their own chin A haunting farewell note addressed to his father was also found inside Roley's truck - signed by him alongside two symbols resembling runes associated with Nazi ideology (pictured: screenshot of Roley's Instagram Story) Kootenai County Battalion Chief Frank Harwood (pictured), 42, was killed in the attack Coeur d'Alene Fire Department Battalion Chief John Morrison (pictured), 52, was also killed in the attack Coeur d'Alene Fire Department Fire Engineer David Tysdal, 47, was also badly hurt in what cops described as 'a total ambush,' but is expected to survive. Earlier this month, Daily Mail exclusively revealed that Roley had a troubled past that included bullying gender-fluid kids at his Arizona high school, making disturbing neo-Nazi comments and posting Holocaust-denying TikTok videos. And after moving to Idaho in summer 2024 after a year living with his grandfather Dale, 66, in Vinita, Oklahoma, his life spun further out of control – with a former roommate telling that he made threatening gang signs, had no friends and cheated him out of a month's rent when he was told to move out. Roley had also fallen out with his father Jason, 39 – a heavily tattooed motorcycle enthusiast whose Facebook page carries several pictures of him in Hell's Angel gear – who lives in remote Priest River, Idaho, with his second wife Sara, 35, and their two young children. 'When he first moved in with me, he was just real quiet,' TJ Franks, 28, told in an interview at his modest apartment home in Sandpoint, Idaho, 60 miles north of Coeur d'Alene. 'He didn't really do a whole lot. He just kind of kept to himself and worked. But then, towards the end of his stay here, we started noticing changes in his behavior. 'He shaved all his hair off. He was keeping really late hours at night.' Other difficult behavior included using Franks's personal items such as his clippers without permission, monopolizing the TV and playing video games deep into the small hours. Earlier this month, Daily Mail exclusively revealed that Roley (left) had a troubled past that included bullying gender-fluid kids at his Arizona high school , making disturbing neo-Nazi comments and posting Holocaust-denying TikTok videos TJ Franks (pictured), 28, told that Roley – who was living out of his van when he died – didn't appear to have any friends at all and frequently complained about wanting a girlfriend After moving to Idaho in summer 2024 after a year living with his grandfather Dale, 66, in Vinita, Oklahoma, his life spun further out of control – with a former roommate saying he made threatening gang signs, had no friends and cheated him out of a month's rent when he was told to move out Franks added: 'He left his vehicle running out here for like, 12 or 13 hours, so the landlord called me and wanted me to check on him, and I knocked on his door. 'He was just sleeping, but he jumped up and said he had no idea that it was running – there was a lot of weird stuff like that.' According to Franks, Roley – who was living out of his van when he died – didn't appear to have any friends at all and frequently complained about wanting a girlfriend. But he did nothing to get one, instead spending most of his time off taking lonely rambles along the 3.5-mile Mickinnick Trail – telling Franks he felt most at home in the forest. The pattern is similar to one observed his former classmates in Arizona, with one North Phoenix Prep School graduate telling that that he would bully other students – including cruelly nicknaming one girl 'Horse Teeth' – and had few friends of his own. More disturbing were his neo-Nazi outbursts and penchant for doodling swastikas and other Nazi symbols in his school notebook. 'He was weird,' recalled the student. 'At one point, in 10th grade he got a girlfriend who was Jewish.' 'They both were spreading neo-Nazi propaganda. Wess's notebook was notorious for having doodles of swastikas and satanic symbols in it,' they added. The pattern is similar to one observed his former classmates in Arizona, with one North Phoenix Prep School graduate saying that that he would bully other students – including cruelly nicknaming one girl 'Horse Teeth' – and had few friends of his own Coeur d'Alene Fire Department Fire Engineer David Tysdal (pictured), 47, was also badly hurt in what cops described as 'a total ambush,' but is expected to survive Roley's father Jason has since posted a tribute to the dead firefighters and changed his Facebook profile photo to a badge that read: 'In loving memories of our fallen heroes.' Later in November 2021, the then-10th grader Roley was expelled after threatening both the school and his classmates. His tattooed, dyed-hair girlfriend also left the school and was never heard from again by classmates. Franks also revealed that Roley had shown a consistent disdain for authority. 'He did say that he has a problem not with authorities but authority,' Franks told 'He has a problem with authority, but he was not a political person. You know, I would talk to him about something that I saw on the news,' he added. 'When I did, he would just kind of laugh and he would say, "it's all bull crap anyway."' Ultimately, Roley's behavior became too much for Franks to tolerate, and he asked him to move out, which he did at the end of January this year. After that, police say he lived a transient lifestyle and was the subject of several welfare and trespass calls but did nothing unduly troubling until last month's shootout that claimed the lives of Chief Harwood and Chief Morrison. Roley's father Jason has since posted a tribute to the dead firefighters and changed his Facebook profile photo to a badge that read: 'In loving memories of our fallen heroes.' He added: 'I have no words. I'm so sorry for the families.' Of his estranged son, he said nothing.
