Cambodia - Sean Flynn, 28, & Dana Stone, 31, Phnom Penh, 6 April 1970

[Richard]

2010 News article with photos about Sean Flynn:

Sean Flynn's Remains Possibly Found in Cambodia - Salem-News.Com

 

[Betty P]

This footage was taken by a French Film crew. The car up ahead was captured the day before by the NVA. Technically, this is the last know media of Sean and Dana. There were Vietnamese in the area, and the night before there were attacks that had destroyed local villages. They were still smoldering when the press showed up the next day with their military escort. Basically 2 eyewitness that saw him on that road, both French Journalists. Both are still alive, sadly one had a stroke. The other is still very much around and is a strong eyewitness based on what data he gave me.

Thanks! Yes, now I remember. I did a deep dive on the latest of this tragic case sometime around 2006 or 2007. I had read Herr's book and Tim Page's back in the 80's, but of course, neither of them was with Sean and Dana when they went missing. They, too had to rely on witness accounts and their own research.

Someone had a web site back then that gave the details related by the French journalists that day. It was such a haunting, terrifying event to me. The Vietnam War was chaos and horror enough, but this event was even worse. I'll admit, when I found that video of Sean last night, it gave me nightmares. I don't know how his poor mother managed. I remember a little of when it happened and made the news, but there was so much going on that year, after Kent State and with all the efforts to end the war. Those were difficult times.

Mike Luering, thanks for the information and corrections. It's been several years. I recall back then there was a theory that the journalists were kidnapped by the (Cambodians? NVA?) to use as a bargaining chip or intimidation tactic against the news media. Wasn't there a French (?) woman journalist who was kidnapped there, but later released? What do you think happened? Were they captured and held prisoner or were they killed soon after? Personally, I think they were capture because they went into a dangerous area, where the villagers or NVA didn't want Americans traveling.

Do you have a map that gives any approximation of where they began their journey and where it ended? In recalling the sequence of events, if the Cambodian government officials were giving a press conference in Saigon, why did the journalists all meet up with them in Cambodia? Thanks for answering these questions. Apologies for having forgotten some of the details.

 

[Independent Investigator]

In the Library of Congress is a telegram dated 6 January 1971 which mentions US efforts to locate missing journalists in Cambodia. While parts of the telegram are redacted (blotted out), it mentions a Newsman named Zalin Grant who had obtained some personal items including a diary of a missing journalist and that it was being examined for possible clues and codes in an effort to locate other American journalists (names redacted) missing in Cambodia.

LINK:
CB: ARMY WAR COLLEGE PAPERS/ Prisoners in Cambodia

I’ve seen this document among thousand others. It’s interesting. And god bless Zahlin and his work which mostly centers around a certain areas of the Eastern Zone in Cambodia.

 

[Independent Investigator]

Thanks! Yes, now I remember. I did a deep dive on the latest of this tragic case sometime around 2006 or 2007. I had read Herr's book and Tim Page's back in the 80's, but of course, neither of them was with Sean and Dana when they went missing. They, too had to rely on witness accounts and their own research.

Someone had a web site back then that gave the details related by the French journalists that day. It was such a haunting, terrifying event to me. The Vietnam War was chaos and horror enough, but this event was even worse. I'll admit, when I found that video of Sean last night, it gave me nightmares. I don't know how his poor mother managed. I remember a little of when it happened and made the news, but there was so much going on that year, after Kent State and with all the efforts to end the war. Those were difficult times.

Mike Luering, thanks for the information and corrections. It's been several years. I recall back then there was a theory that the journalists were kidnapped by the (Cambodians? NVA?) to use as a bargaining chip or intimidation tactic against the news media. Wasn't there a French (?) woman journalist who was kidnapped there, but later released? What do you think happened? Were they captured and held prisoner or were they killed soon after? Personally, I think they were capture because they went into a dangerous area, where the villagers or NVA didn't want Americans traveling.

Do you have a map that gives any approximation of where they began their journey and where it ended? In recalling the sequence of events, if the Cambodian government officials were giving a press conference in Saigon, why did the journalists all meet up with them in Cambodia? Thanks for answering these questions. Apologies for having forgotten some of the details.

I will try to answer. The video is a sad reminder of the case but we are fortunate at least to have a good idea what Sean looked like before he went missing. And yes, Sean’s Family suffer to this day. Sean was dearly loved by his family. Sean’s mother spent major money looking however nothing came of it. Sean was declared dead in the 80’s, and his mom never knew what happened.

1. It’s really unknown who captured Sean and Dana. Working theory was it was the NVA (North Vietnamese Communist) day or local militia. The Khmer Rouge was Just gaining steam in the spring of 197o after a coup d’état installed General Lon Nol as they leader of Cambodia. There are reports of Caucasians being sighted from 1970-1975 being detained near the border with Vietnam, in the eastern zone, and the North Western zone bordering Cambodia. All are areas that are being researched.

2. Route 1 outside of a Chi Pu is where they were last seen. I have further data but need to keep confidential until we can eliminate what we’re investigating. I have all the locations where they were, including where the two slept the night before.

3. Sean, Dana and many other Journalists has already assembled in the capitol of Cambodia, Phnom Penh to start covering the “secret” bombings rumored to be going on in Cambodia, in addition to covering the NVA who were on the Cambodian side of the border and were engaging the United States and South Vietnamese forces in the area known as the “parrots beak.” A press convoy was assembled and drove out to the site the day they went missing. Also Giles Caron, Guy Hannoteux, and a Michele Visot all were reported missing the day before and were part of the press core.

3. There were several female journalists who were in Cambodia. Elizabeth Pond I believe you are referring to, she was captured by the NVA and were released. Sadly Pond passed away a few years back.

4. There are many theories and ideas. All unprovable. I can’t comment on ongoing investigations however there is a strong belief he might have survived his initial capture and was moved out of the area. Still, until someone tells us to dig here or look there it’s all speculation.

 

[Betty P]

I will try to answer. The video is a sad reminder of the case but we are fortunate at least to have a good idea what Sean looked like before he went missing. And yes, Sean’s Family suffer to this day. Sean was dearly loved by his family. Sean’s mother spent major money looking however nothing came of it. Sean was declared dead in the 80’s, and his mom never knew what happened.

1. It’s really unknown who captured Sean and Dana. Working theory was it was the NVA (North Vietnamese Communist) day or local militia. The Khmer Rouge was Just gaining steam in the spring of 197o after a coup d’état installed General Lon Nol as they leader of Cambodia. There are reports of Caucasians being sighted from 1970-1975 being detained near the border with Vietnam, in the eastern zone, and the North Western zone bordering Cambodia. All are areas that are being researched.

2. Route 1 outside of a Chi Pu is where they were last seen. I have further data but need to keep confidential until we can eliminate what we’re investigating. I have all the locations where they were, including where the two slept the night before.

3. Sean, Dana and many other Journalists has already assembled in the capitol of Cambodia, Phnom Penh to start covering the “secret” bombings rumored to be going on in Cambodia, in addition to covering the NVA who were on the Cambodian side of the border and were engaging the United States and South Vietnamese forces in the area known as the “parrots beak.” A press convoy was assembled and drove out to the site the day they went missing. Also Giles Caron, Guy Hannoteux, and a Michele Visot all were reported missing the day before and were part of the press core.

3. There were several female journalists who were in Cambodia. Elizabeth Pond I believe you are referring to, she was captured by the NVA and were released. Sadly Pond passed away a few years back.

4. There are many theories and ideas. All unprovable. I can’t comment on ongoing investigations however there is a strong belief he might have survived his initial capture and was moved out of the area. Still, until someone tells us to dig here or look there it’s all speculation.

Thanks so much for filling in the blanks. I thought I recalled them starting from Phnom Penh. I do recall the news of rumors of US bombing in Cambodia. It wouldn't have leaked had it not been for these brave, intrepid journalists. It's difficult for people to realize how incredibly dangerous this reporting was. These reporters had zero protection or support from the military on either side. No cell phones, no way to communicate The information they uncovered was very explosive, but eventually helped bring an end to the Vietnam War. People think of Cronkite and the Tet Offensive as a turning point, but JMO, the anti-war sentiment didn't get serious until the bombing in Cambodia, Kent State and the subsequent explosion of protests across the US.

This is just Wikipedia, but there are many other good resources, including Ken Burns docu a couple years ago. Cambodian campaign - Wikipedia

Sean and Dana lost their lives, but they made a very big contribution to this effort - in my opinion

So here's a link to the map of the route/roads today from Phnom Penh to Saigon. As you say, the military action was around the Parrot's Beak. IIRC, in information released in recent years, there were some US troops, but mostly a lot of "listening posts", etc. over there.

خرائط ‪Google‬‏‏

Another

Rough Timeline:

1970

Nixon and US military leaders wanted to expand the war into Laos and Cambodia to shut off supply lines along the Ho Chi Minh trail

March 18 - Regime change in Cambodia - National Assembly removes previous leader and installs Gen. Lon Nol as provisional head of state. Lon Nol was friendly to western forces and would allow Nixon to send troops into Cambodia to wipe out VC and North Vietnamese forces (PAVN). The deposed Cambodian leader left the country and formed alliances with VC, Khmer Rouge, etc. Civil war began in Cambodia.

March 29 - Prior to this date, PAVN (N. Vietnamese forces) had been attacking the Cambodian military (FANK). PAVN attacked and killed many civilians in villages along the eastern Cambodian border, near South Vietnam & Parrot's Beak.

Early April - Gen. Lon Nol (new pro- U.S. Cambodian leader) has Cambodian troops begin rounding up Vietnamese natives who live in Cambodia. He wanted to use them as hostages to prevent the N Vietnamese troops from attacking Cambodia (because US troops were not allowed in Cambodia). Apparently other activity was going on, including secret bombing by US forces (USAF? USN?)

April 2 - 4 Western journalists in Cambodia disappear

April 6 - Cambodia press junket is planned in Saigon. Sean Flynn, Dana Stone disappear along the route as Cambodian government officials escort a group of journalists along Hwy 1 to Saigon (this junket still makes no sense to me, rather fishy). From various accounts I've read, Sean and Dana left the press group to go to the area where they disappeared because they heard there were VC troops there and wanted to document it.

April 20 - President Richard Nixon announces to the US that he will remove over 150,000 US troops from South Vietnam over the next year, per his campaign promise.

April 22 - Nixon (secretly?) begins planning for movement of ARVN troops into the Parrot's Beak area. He also authorized US air support for the operation, which many perceived as an escalation of the war, instead of promised de-escalation. He also authorizes secret planning for US troops to attack in the Fishhook area. Many experts oppose it as ill conceived.

April 30 - Nixon appears on all 3 U.S. tv networks to announce US troops will invade Cambodia

May 1 - At Kent State University in Kent, OH (and at universities and college campuses across the US) students gather at rallies to protest the expansion of the Vietnam War into Cambodia. About 500 students attend the rally at Kent State and plan to have a major protest on May 4.

May 2 - Rumors circulated downtown Kent of vandalism against businesses. Around 8 pm, over 1,000 students surrounded the ROTC building on campus in protest. A few set the (small, very old) building on fire. The fire department came, then left after some students stopped them from fighting the blaze. No one was hurt. The National Guard, some with fixed bayonets, chased students across campus and into dormitories.

May 3 - The day was peaceful. Some students gathered peacefully at an intersection on campus demanding to speak to officials about removing the National Guard from the campus. Nothing happened. The National Guard attacked the students with tear gas and bayonets as they retreated to dormitories again.

May 4 - Class resumes and students assemble as planned for a peaceful protest on the campus Commons at noon, despite it having been banned by the National Guard. The guard approached, ordered the students to leave and began shooting tear gas. Students responded by throwing rocks. The NG troops, who had told the University they were only using dummy rubber bullets, fired live ammunition on the crowd of students, killing 4 and wounding 9.

After the shootings, over 450 campuses across the US were closed due to demonstrations.

May 4 Chronology | Special Collections and Archives | Kent State University Libraries

Will add more info later. Just wanted to include the very important historic context of the reporting that Sean Flynn and Dana Stone were doing. JMO, they were heroes, as were the other journalists trying to report this story. At the Wiki link above regarding Nixon's Cambodian campaign, even the US military was concerned about the lack of safety and quality in the plans Nixon's team had developed for US troops invasion of the area.

 

[Betty P]

I’ve seen this document among thousand others. It’s interesting. And god bless Zahlin and his work which mostly centers around a certain areas of the Eastern Zone in Cambodia.

Zalin is great. I learned a LOT at his web site. Good to see it's still there.

THE SEAN FLYNN I KNEW

DANA & LOUISE: A WAR COUPLE

The second article relates a story told by a Dutch journalist who claimed he saw Dana Stone wounded in a NVA field hospital, then returned to find him. Crazy story. This was a few months after Sean and Dana disappeared.

 

[Independent Investigator]

Choeung Ek, the killing fields, which is now overrun with tourists apparently. When I was there it was very somber, and very respectful visitors.
I remember the photos of the prisoners with chains around their necks, the devices of torture, and the blood left on the walls.

The piles of clothing and endless piles of skulls and bones could very well contain the remains of Flynn and Stone.

After seeing this horrific evidence of the worst of humanity, I visited people living the most simple lives in stilted huts along Siem Riep, who were amongst the sweetest and happiest people I have ever met. I thought this happiness might be the ultimate victory, or act of defiance against the evil that had visited their land.

Amateur opinion and speculation

As many times I have been to Cambodia, I personally have chosen not to visit that location or Toul Sleng prison. I know too about the KR, what they did and how they operated that I don’t need to see it.

 

[Richard]

Perhaps a bit off subject, but here is a good website about the Khmer (Cambodian) Air Force.

It is dedicated to the pilots, observers, mechanics, and instructors who sacrificed so much in attempting to keep the country from falling to the Communists (Khmer Rouge and NVA).

LINK:
KAF - Khmer Air Force

 

[rosesfromangels]

As many times I have been to Cambodia, I personally have chosen not to visit that location or Toul Sleng prison. I know too about the KR, what they did and how they operated that I don’t need to see it.

I can understand that. I am still haunted by what I saw. Has there been any rewards offered for info leading to recovery of remains?

amateur opinion and speculation

 

[Betty P]

Another article from 2010 about the work Sean's sister, Rory, has been doing to find answers

Clearing the Air for Missing Photojournalist Sean Flynn's Family - Salem-News.Com

I hope some day it's all sorted out. I don't see any mention of a reward.

There seem to be a few theories and locations people have in mind about where they ended up. I was reading Zalin Grant's site again last night.

THE SEAN FLYNN I KNEW

They were turned over to the Khmer Rouge three weeks later, along with more than a dozen other international journalists. It was my best judgment that they were held until late 1973 or early 1974 and then executed near Kratie City, in the north of Cambodia, on the Mekong River.

I'm not remotely an expert, but I tend to agree with his idea that Sean and Dana were put together with other journalists who had been recently captured. The North Vietnamese tended to aggregate prisoners together that way, eg pilots who were shot down over Hanoi.

• Were they considering using them as a bargaining tool, as hostages? That became a common tactic during the 70's and 80's, eg Iran hostage crisis.

• Where were they kept until they were turned over to the Khmer Rouge?

• Zalin Grant thinks they were alive a few years and finally killed up north near Kratie City. That's a long way from where they were captured. Was there a POW prison there?
• Am I correct in seeing the location where Tim Page thinks they are buried as being in the far southern part of Cambodia, south of Phnom Phenh?
• Transportation was probably difficult in the early days after Sean & Dana disappeared. ICBW, but it sounded as like there were opposing military factions (one representing the new Cambodian govt. leader, another with the deposed leader) roaming around that area, fighting. Mix in northern Vietnamese/VC troops and the civilian population of both Cambodian and Vietnamese origin. Add in US troops or similar activity, also ARVN. I can't imagine it would be easy to move around a group of prisoners in that environment.
• The car that was left on the road by Hwy 1 allegedly belonged to journalists who had been taken prisoner a day or so before. Was it put there as bait to attract other journalists?
• I'm still trying to sort out details of the timeline. Not sure if it's reporting errors, but some of the stories from that day told by witnesses conflict.

I'm thinking of asking my senator for some direction on searching government resources. He was a "hippie" from the Vietnam era who has always had intense interest in POW work, finding and retrieving remains. I'm sure Zalin and others have done great searches of military files that are now declassified. Just wondering about good places to look where there might be more intel about POW camps in Cambodia, troop movements, etc. from back in the day.

Here's an account of a kidnapping of 3 US journalists a few weeks after Sean & Dana: Richard Dudman, Elizabeth Pond and Michael Morrow. They were released.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/loca...14b6f2-7873-11e7-8839-ec48ec4cae25_story.html

I'll keep building the timeline.

ETA: Rosesfromangels, it must be a very haunting experience to visit those areas. I shudder to think of it, all the deaths. People say Cambodia is a lovely country with lovely people, but it's not on my bucket list to visit. Some cases really haunt you and give you nightmares. For some reason this one does it to me.

 

[Independent Investigator]

Another article from 2010 about the work Sean's sister, Rory, has been doing to find answers

Clearing the Air for Missing Photojournalist Sean Flynn's Family - Salem-News.Com

I hope some day it's all sorted out. I don't see any mention of a reward.

There seem to be a few theories and locations people have in mind about where they ended up. I was reading Zalin Grant's site again last night.

THE SEAN FLYNN I KNEW




I'm not remotely an expert, but I tend to agree with his idea that Sean and Dana were put together with other journalists who had been recently captured. The North Vietnamese tended to aggregate prisoners together that way, eg pilots who were shot down over Hanoi.

• Were they considering using them as a bargaining tool, as hostages? That became a common tactic during the 70's and 80's, eg Iran hostage crisis.

• Where were they kept until they were turned over to the Khmer Rouge?

• Zalin Grant thinks they were alive a few years and finally killed up north near Kratie City. That's a long way from where they were captured. Was there a POW prison there?
• Am I correct in seeing the location where Tim Page thinks they are buried as being in the far southern part of Cambodia, south of Phnom Phenh?
• Transportation was probably difficult in the early days after Sean & Dana disappeared. ICBW, but it sounded as like there were opposing military factions (one representing the new Cambodian govt. leader, another with the deposed leader) roaming around that area, fighting. Mix in northern Vietnamese/VC troops and the civilian population of both Cambodian and Vietnamese origin. Add in US troops or similar activity, also ARVN. I can't imagine it would be easy to move around a group of prisoners in that environment.
• The car that was left on the road by Hwy 1 allegedly belonged to journalists who had been taken prisoner a day or so before. Was it put there as bait to attract other journalists?
• I'm still trying to sort out details of the timeline. Not sure if it's reporting errors, but some of the stories from that day told by witnesses conflict.

I'm thinking of asking my senator for some direction on searching government resources. He was a "hippie" from the Vietnam era who has always had intense interest in POW work, finding and retrieving remains. I'm sure Zalin and others have done great searches of military files that are now declassified. Just wondering about good places to look where there might be more intel about POW camps in Cambodia, troop movements, etc. from back in the day.

Here's an account of a kidnapping of 3 US journalists a few weeks after Sean & Dana: Richard Dudman, Elizabeth Pond and Michael Morrow. They were released.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/loca...14b6f2-7873-11e7-8839-ec48ec4cae25_story.html

I'll keep building the timeline.

ETA: Rosesfromangels, it must be a very haunting experience to visit those areas. I shudder to think of it, all the deaths. People say Cambodia is a lovely country with lovely people, but it's not on my bucket list to visit. Some cases really haunt you and give you nightmares. For some reason this one does it to me.

I appreciate this info. Let me clarify a couple of things mentioned.

1. The article from the Salem Times written by Tim King quotes me and Rory. I run the search efforts for Rory with my partner in Vietnam. It’s a good article explaining what happened when we found our first set of remains which Page or Grant have never been able to do.

2. The theories presented by Zahlin Grant and Tim Page are just theories. The US Gov had already studied and re verified at length, both theories and have investigated at great lengths with no results. It was not until 2010 that a independent recovery was made. Grant returns to the area with US Gov and was unable to find anything. His work is solid however there have been no unique eyewitness located to back up his claims to a specific site. Grant has chosen to remain private recently regarding his work which is a shame. Tim Page’s Reaearch has been checked out. The US Gov has no interest is his data which in their opinion is not valid regarding where Sean was buried.

3. There is no data that supports if they were killed immediately, or were sent out of the area. Since so many journalists were captured, it’s hard to know for sure what happened. There are reports that Caucasians were spotted in the eastern zone, where we focused our efforts in 2010. Grants work was the most respected and I do feel he was on the trail or some of them, but who and where is still unknown.

4. Lastly when you say “prison” it’s not like we think. It’s usually a camp or isolated location. Very rare if there were more than a couple of buildings. There were several of this areas in Cambodia. They were mobile and often moved to different areas. Until we have eyewitnesses that saw them at a Particular location, with other data it’s anyone’s guess where these men ended up. There is some speculation that some
Of the journalists where captured by the NVA and later ended up with the Khmer Rouge. It’s been noted that entire prisons in the eastern zone changed hands between the NVA and the Khmer Rouge which ended up enemies later on (closer to 1974/75.) There is intense cultural animosity between the Cambodians and Vietnamese that’s similar to the Jews and Arabs which further complicates the investigation. Either way many reports (Un specific and uncorrelated) that claim eyewitness saw Caucasians under guard by the Vietnamese and Khmer Rouge in Cambodia.

5. I appreciate the idea of looking but I have scoured the US Gov, Cambodian Gov, and European Gov (France, Sweden) and have a large Archive. Any information we felt was important has been checked out with no luck. And sadly most info in those documents are second hand information or data that just does not have and meaning to the investigation. It’s only good for finding singular clues which could be followed up on. It was this process we found the eyewitness that showed us where to dig in 2010.

What really needs to happen is the DPAA lab in Hawaii needs new leadership and a citizen oversight board to re-examine all evidence it has. There are cases that have been solved recently that sat over ten years waiting to be solved. The DPAA needs to be exposed for inaction especially with the cases in Cambodia. I say all of this from personal experience and interaction with the US Gov for 10 years. If anything, DPAA would love to close these cases. Rory and I will never let that happen. If anything publicity and attention needs to be brought to the case.

 

[Betty P]

I appreciate this info. Let me clarify a couple of things mentioned.

1. The article from the Salem Times written by Tim King quotes me and Rory. I run the search efforts for Rory with my partner in Vietnam. It’s a good article explaining what happened when we found our first set of remains which Page or Grant have never been able to do.

2. The theories presented by Zahlin Grant and Tim Page are just theories. The US Gov had already studied and re verified at length, both theories and have investigated at great lengths with no results. It was not until 2010 that a independent recovery was made. Grant returns to the area with US Gov and was unable to find anything. His work is solid however there have been no unique eyewitness located to back up his claims to a specific site. Grant has chosen to remain private recently regarding his work which is a shame. Tim Page’s Reaearch has been checked out. The US Gov has no interest is his data which in their opinion is not valid regarding where Sean was buried.

3. There is no data that supports if they were killed immediately, or were sent out of the area. Since so many journalists were captured, it’s hard to know for sure what happened. There are reports that Caucasians were spotted in the eastern zone, where we focused our efforts in 2010. Grants work was the most respected and I do feel he was on the trail or some of them, but who and where is still unknown.

4. Lastly when you say “prison” it’s not like we think. It’s usually a camp or isolated location. Very rare if there were more than a couple of buildings. There were several of this areas in Cambodia. They were mobile and often moved to different areas. Until we have eyewitnesses that saw them at a Particular location, with other data it’s anyone’s guess where these men ended up. There is some speculation that some
Of the journalists where captured by the NVA and later ended up with the Khmer Rouge. It’s been noted that entire prisons in the eastern zone changed hands between the NVA and the Khmer Rouge which ended up enemies later on (closer to 1974/75.) There is intense cultural animosity between the Cambodians and Vietnamese that’s similar to the Jews and Arabs which further complicates the investigation. Either way many reports (Un specific and uncorrelated) that claim eyewitness saw Caucasians under guard by the Vietnamese and Khmer Rouge in Cambodia.

5. I appreciate the idea of looking but I have scoured the US Gov, Cambodian Gov, and European Gov (France, Sweden) and have a large Archive. Any information we felt was important has been checked out with no luck. And sadly most info in those documents are second hand information or data that just does not have and meaning to the investigation. It’s only good for finding singular clues which could be followed up on. It was this process we found the eyewitness that showed us where to dig in 2010.

What really needs to happen is the DPAA lab in Hawaii needs new leadership and a citizen oversight board to re-examine all evidence it has. There are cases that have been solved recently that sat over ten years waiting to be solved. The DPAA needs to be exposed for inaction especially with the cases in Cambodia. I say all of this from personal experience and interaction with the US Gov for 10 years. If anything, DPAA would love to close these cases. Rory and I will never let that happen. If anything publicity and attention needs to be brought to the case.

Thanks so much for your detailed reply! I appreciate the information as I'm reviewing my past sources and this saves me some time re-checking for updates.

I found my old copy of Jeffrey Meyers' "Inherited Risk" and reviewed the chapter on Sean's disappearance along with the reference section for the same. It does look like a lot of you have gone over all available documents from the military and intelligence sources.

Thanks also for the explanation of the frequent prisoner moves that happened. Reading Meyer's book again helps explain why the NVA probably had to keep and hide US prisoners as they couldn't publicly admit to their presence in Cambodia at the time. I'm certainly no expert, but it would seem more likely S & D would have been kept in remote areas to the north of where they were captured (as opposed to the south). The NVA needed to be near supply and escape routes to their own country. Frequent moves were because of the growing air and ground based attacks from the US and Allies.

Re: The prisons, Meyers book also touches on reports of those, saying they were primitive and that the journalists were allowed to walk around freely for much of their time in captivity, for a while anyway. I keep wondering if S & D were dealt with differently or if there was a different location where prisoners were held than the POW prisons officially known. Neither of the men returned, nor have their remains been identified. Of 90 Americans taken prison there, 42 have been repatriated. JMO, there must be one, two or more other prison sites. Sadly, I wonder if they were killed not long after their capture, possibly due to an escape attempt.

Re: Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency - are you saying you think they may have remains that haven't been identified? Without going into detail, I think I understand what you're saying. Remains could be mixed, containing the DNA of multiple people, but weren't properly tested.

Progress in Cambodia > Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency > Article View

Has anyone lobbied Congress on this issue in recent years? That's often the best way, though in recent years its difficult to be heard in DC unless you have a lot of cash . It can still be done. I might be able to offer a little advice or help in that area (sorry, not with cash, but with lobbying).

I'm so glad you and Rory are keeping this search alive. A lot of people still remember Sean and Dana, and hopefully they will be found and repatriated. As a mom of son's who are only slightly older than S & D were when they went missing, I have so much sympathy for the family. I can't imagine how difficult it is being left not knowing what happened.

Let's keep this thread bumped to attract more attention!

 

[Independent Investigator]

Thanks so much for your detailed reply! I appreciate the information as I'm reviewing my past sources and this saves me some time re-checking for updates.

I found my old copy of Jeffrey Meyers' "Inherited Risk" and reviewed the chapter on Sean's disappearance along with the reference section for the same. It does look like a lot of you have gone over all available documents from the military and intelligence sources.

Thanks also for the explanation of the frequent prisoner moves that happened. Reading Meyer's book again helps explain why the NVA probably had to keep and hide US prisoners as they couldn't publicly admit to their presence in Cambodia at the time. I'm certainly no expert, but it would seem more likely S & D would have been kept in remote areas to the north of where they were captured (as opposed to the south). The NVA needed to be near supply and escape routes to their own country. Frequent moves were because of the growing air and ground based attacks from the US and Allies.

Re: The prisons, Meyers book also touches on reports of those, saying they were primitive and that the journalists were allowed to walk around freely for much of their time in captivity, for a while anyway. I keep wondering if S & D were dealt with differently or if there was a different location where prisoners were held than the POW prisons officially known. Neither of the men returned, nor have their remains been identified. Of 90 Americans taken prison there, 42 have been repatriated. JMO, there must be one, two or more other prison sites. Sadly, I wonder if they were killed not long after their capture, possibly due to an escape attempt.

Re: Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency - are you saying you think they may have remains that haven't been identified? Without going into detail, I think I understand what you're saying. Remains could be mixed, containing the DNA of multiple people, but weren't properly tested.

Progress in Cambodia > Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency > Article View

Has anyone lobbied Congress on this issue in recent years? That's often the best way, though in recent years its difficult to be heard in DC unless you have a lot of cash . It can still be done. I might be able to offer a little advice or help in that area (sorry, not with cash, but with lobbying).

I'm so glad you and Rory are keeping this search alive. A lot of people still remember Sean and Dana, and hopefully they will be found and repatriated. As a mom of son's who are only slightly older than S & D were when they went missing, I have so much sympathy for the family. I can't imagine how difficult it is being left not knowing what happened.

Let's keep this thread bumped to attract more attention!

Thanks again for your post. I’ve seen the book you mentioned. Again it’s all mere speculation. My focus is finding Khmer nationals in Cambodia or the United States that might have seen or know something. I anyone on Web Sleuths could assist on this level would be very valuable.

I’m not sure what our Gov would do at the moment trying to change how the DPAA operates. We have found remains on our own and they know we can operate better than they can in Cambodia and Vietnam. So if we have info and it’s viable we will dig if we can locate the area.

 

[Betty P]

Thanks again for your post. I’ve seen the book you mentioned. Again it’s all mere speculation. My focus is finding Khmer nationals in Cambodia or the United States that might have seen or know something. I anyone on Web Sleuths could assist on this level would be very valuable.

I’m not sure what our Gov would do at the moment trying to change how the DPAA operates. We have found remains on our own and they know we can operate better than they can in Cambodia and Vietnam. So if we have info and it’s viable we will dig if we can locate the area.

Thanks so much for your reply. I finished reading that final chapter in "Inherited Risk". It's difficult to surmise whether any of the scenarios he mentions are accurate. There doesn't seem to be much evidence, only accounts of locals. He also discusses some remains that were recovered but later went missing or were lost. I'm still working on a database/timeline. Do you think Sean and Dana became separated? Were they kept with any of the other western journalists who had also been captured?

Bottom line, as you say, is the fact you've found remains on your own, so it's possible there's more out there. We'll keep this thread active here and hope someone shares some information. I only know of one person who is Vietnamese and speaks the language, but I could ask them about the Cambodian community in the US. Have you found luck in outreach to the Cambodian community online?

 

[Richard]

Finding graves in Cambodia should be pretty easy, since over a million people were butchered by the Khmer Rouge in the late 1970's. Finding a specific grave would be the challenge.

To get a good idea of the type of isolated jungle prison camps that existed at the time in Cambodia and Laos, read Dieter Dengler's book "Escape from Laos" or see the movie based on that book: "Rescue Dawn". Each of those prisons was controlled by local Communist militia guards. If they got tired of guarding the prisoners, they would easily kill them and claim that they were trying to "escape". The only reason that they would keep Americans alive would be for their value in trade for something they wanted.

 

[Independent Investigator]

Thanks so much for your reply. I finished reading that final chapter in "Inherited Risk". It's difficult to surmise whether any of the scenarios he mentions are accurate. There doesn't seem to be much evidence, only accounts of locals. He also discusses some remains that were recovered but later went missing or were lost. I'm still working on a database/timeline. Do you think Sean and Dana became separated? Were they kept with any of the other western journalists who had also been captured?

Bottom line, as you say, is the fact you've found remains on your own, so it's possible there's more out there. We'll keep this thread active here and hope someone shares some information. I only know of one person who is Vietnamese and speaks the language, but I could ask them about the Cambodian community in the US. Have you found luck in outreach to the Cambodian community online?

I really appreciate your interest. I also would like to see and assist with the database. It would be a useful tool and I have thought about it in the past just never got around to putting one together.

Regarding Sean and Dana being together it’s anyone’s best guess. My eyewitness who ran into Sean on the day he went missing said Dana was not present, and he is not seen in the news footage either. Yet data suggests that 2 western journalists were captured that day. So again up in the air. If I were to guess I would assume they were together or could have been captured separately and then were reunited in captivity.

I have some folks helping in the Khmer Community in France and the United States.
Terry Reynolds, another missing journalist captured (American.) Terry’s wife is a Vietnamese immigrant who I am trying to locate. If we could gain assistance with that it would be helpful. It’s important that family members know we are looking.

 

[Independent Investigator]

Finding graves in Cambodia should be pretty easy, since over a million people were butchered by the Khmer Rouge in the late 1970's. Finding a specific grave would be the challenge.

To get a good idea of the type of isolated jungle prison camps that existed at the time in Cambodia and Laos, read Dieter Dengler's book "Escape from Laos" or see the movie based on that book: "Rescue Dawn". Each of those prisons was controlled by local Communist militia guards. If they got tired of guarding the prisoners, they would easily kill them and claim that they were trying to "escape". The only reason that they would keep Americans alive would be for their value in trade for something they wanted.

I think it’s safe to say that if Sean and Dana were in captivity then they were in the eastern zone (Kampong Chom province.) There are some who believe all journalists who survived capture ended up in this area, and it’s where our team recovered remains in 2010. Still till this day I have no evidence, or interviews that have been vetted to support this theory. Yet many before me have put emphasis on this area of Cambodia.

interesting fact of “Rescue Dawn.” My co worker sold all the 35mm Fuji rawstock the production used to shoot the film. I purchased the film in Germany and it was shipped directly to Thailand. I spent over 16 years in the film biz selling Kodak and Fuji Filmstock, it’s how I met Rory Flynn. Intense film and yes it’s accurate.

 

[Betty P]

From April 5, through April 8, 1970 nine journalists were captured by the Vietcong on Hwy 1. All are still missing.
Another 15 journalists were captured in Cambodia during the remainder of 1970, bringing the total to 20 in less than 1 yr.

All still missing.

Kind of seems premeditated, doesn't it?

List of journalists killed and missing in the Vietnam War - Wikipedia

Article about the journalists/photographers killed in Cambodia and the Khmer Rouge trial in 2009

A Tribute to War Photographers

Some very accomplished photographers were lost in Cambodia.

Another article by Southerland who was on Hwy 1 that day. He worked for the Christian Science Monitor then.

War "From the Other Side"

 

[Richard]

Here is a link to information regarding Cambodia and the search for missing Americans following the 1975 Khmer Rouge takeover.

Cambodia: Firsthand live sighting in Cambodia in 1975

There are a number of documents linked to the site. What is interesting is the way that analysts look at any given report.

For instance, a Cambodian refugee in 1986 claims to have seen a caucasian male prisoner in 1975, and gives many details in his report such as the man was said to be a Major, captured in 1975, who was in charge of a CIA group (this information told to the informant by Khmer Rouge).

Analysts then focus in on specific details and refute them with other specific details. Such as only two Americans were missing in Cambodia in 1975, and the only Majors listed as Missing were three US Pilots killed in separate incidents. Conclusion: the informant was lying.

But what if the Khmer Rouge who told the story to him was lying? Could that be remotely possible?!

The link above has other interesting bits of information about Cambodia as well.

 

[Independent Investigator]

Here is a link to information regarding Cambodia and the search for missing Americans following the 1975 Khmer Rouge takeover.

Cambodia: Firsthand live sighting in Cambodia in 1975

There are a number of documents linked to the site. What is interesting is the way that analysts look at any given report.

For instance, a Cambodian refugee in 1986 claims to have seen a caucasian male prisoner in 1975, and gives many details in his report such as the man was said to be a Major, captured in 1975, who was in charge of a CIA group (this information told to the informant by Khmer Rouge).

Analysts then focus in on specific details and refute them with other specific details. Such as only two Americans were missing in Cambodia in 1975, and the only Majors listed as Missing were three US Pilots killed in separate incidents. Conclusion: the informant was lying.

But what if the Khmer Rouge who told the story to him was lying? Could that be remotely possible?!

The link above has other interesting bits of information about Cambodia as well.

I will check this report out. The Khmer Rouge accuses anyone they did not like as being with the CIA. They even tortured people for that confession. Sadly the CIA has very little of no presence. Remember that a lot of these reports are biased. Every now and again we will find a clue or a name of someone that we can follow up with in real time but most of it has been vetted.