What happened to Marine Matthew Kraft, still missing after going on hike?

A year after Marine disappears on High Sierra hike, family still unsure what happened

Orange County Register
Erika I. Ritchie
PUBLISHED: February 24, 2020

...But a special kind of Marine needs no words, symbols or proclamations to describe their love for the Corps. Their love is found in late nights at the office, their stoicism in harsh conditions, genuine concern for subordinates and an obstinate adherence to what is right, regardless of the situation. These Marines live on through their influence and deeds, setting the example for the rest to come. Matt was one of these Marines.”

Marine Matthew Kraft is seen here hiking with his mother, Roxanne Kraft, in Shenandoah National Park, Virginia. (Courtesy of the Kraft family)

Every night, Greg Kraft turns on an electric candle that sits in the window of his family’s Connecticut home.

“I turn it on and I say, ‘God Bless Matt,’ ” Kraft said Friday, Feb. 21, his voice choked with emotion. “In the morning I turn it off and say ‘God Bless Matt.’ “

The candle, in the upstairs middle dormer of his Williamsburg Cape Cod-style home, is lighted so his son, Capt. Matthew Kraft, can find his way back.

Matthew Kraft, a platoon leader with the 1st Battalion/7th Marines at Twentynine Palms, part of the 1st Marine Division based at Camp Pendleton, disappeared after taking leave from the Marine Corps for a two-week backcountry ski trip along the High Sierra Route starting Feb. 24, 2019.

He had planned the rugged trek for his pre-deployment leave, before his unit was to depart for Afghanistan.

That’s when I came to grips with it,” said Greg Kraft. “It’s also the day (March 15) the Marine Corps calls the date of death.”

An official statement, released by the Marine Corps on April 11, said Matthew Kraft died after being “overcome by severe winter storms.”

Kraft was posthumously promoted from 1st Lt. to the rank of Captain.
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Missing veteran Jesse Conger's car found in Arizona

Vehicle belonging to missing Scottsdale Marine Jesse Conger found in eastern Arizona

Author: 12 News
January 25, 2020

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The Toyota Camry that belongs to Jesse Conger, the Marine who went missing last year, has been found, Scottsdale police confirmed Saturday.

The Scottsdale Police Department said the car was located in San Carlos, about 105 miles from the city where Conger was last seen.

No other details were immediately released. The case remains under investigation.
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Missing veteran Jesse Conger...a billionaire wants to know where you are

update They have not given up searching for Jesse Conger!

Make that $30,000

Detroit billionaire offering $10,000 reward for missing Scottsdale marine #MissingVeteranAlert

FOX 10 Phoenix
By Justin Lum
August 25, 2019

Conger may be driving a 2015 Toyota Camry with Nevada license plate number 696G03 and is believed to possibly be in Mexico. Smith says there are many families of veterans with PTSD who just need to reach out before it's too late.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - A billionaire and philanthropist from Detroit, Michigan is offering a $10,000 reward to the person who finds a missing combat veteran from Scottsdale.

Scottsdale Police say Jesse Conger was last seen August 14 at his Scottsdale apartment. He is described as a 37-year-old white man, 6'2", 200 pounds, with brown hair, a full beard, and blue eyes. He has tattoos on his left arm and the word "rise" tattooed on his chest.

Conger is a veteran who is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and depression, according to family. Police said he reportedly made suicidal statements in the days leading up to his disappearance.

Bill Pulte, the Chief Executive Officer of Pulte Capital and Blight Authority, offered to help in the search, vowing to give $10,000 in reward money to whoever helps find Conger.
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Remains of missing Marines found

Team recovers remains of US Marine aviators killed in midair collision off Japan

STARS AND STRIPES
By SETH ROBSON
Published: June 10, 2019

TOKYO — Salvagers have recovered human remains from an area of the Philippine Sea where two U.S. military aircraft crashed on Dec. 6, the III Marine Expeditionary Force said in a statement Monday.

A KC-130J Super Hercules with Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 152 takes off from Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, July 15, 2014. LUIS RODRIGUEZ/U.S. MARINE CORPS

Five crew members of a KC-130J tanker and the pilot of an F/A-18 Hornet were killed in a midair collision during nighttime training off Japan’s southern coast. The Hornet’s weapons officer was the sole survivor.

A search by U.S. and Japanese forces for the lost aviators that spanned 35,000 square nautical miles was called off Dec. 11.
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Camp Pendleton Marine Missing At Sea

Search underway for Camp Pendleton Marine missing at sea
San Diego Union Tribune
Andrew Dyer
August 10, 2018

An all-hands effort is underway near the Philippines to find a U.S. Marine reported overboard Thursday morning from the amphibious assault ship Essex.

An MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft prepared to depart the flight deck of the USS Essex (LHD 2) on July 17. The Essex and its crew of sailors and marines left San Diego July 10. (U.S. Navy)

The unidentified Marine is deployed with the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit based out of Camp Pendleton.

The Essex left Naval Base San Diego with its complement of Marines on July 10.

The Navy, Marine Corps and Philippine ships and aircraft are searching the Sulu Sea, where the ship was conducting routine operations, the Marines said in a news release Friday.

“It is an all-hands effort to find our missing Marine,” said Navy Capt. Gerald Olin, the amphibious squadron commander leading the search and rescue operation, in a statement. “All of our sailors, Marines and available assets aboard the USS Essex have been and will continue to be involved in this incredibly important search and rescue operation.”
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Marine's body found in river 4th of July

Marine found dead in river at Fort Leonard Wood identified
KSDK 5 News
Author: KSDK Staff
July 6, 2018

The Marine went missing on the Fourth of July after being swept away by the river's current.

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. — The Marine involved in the Big Piney River incident on Fort Leonard Wood has been identified as Pfc. Corey Staten.

Staten was a Basic Motor Transport Marine assigned to the Marine Corps Detachment at Fort Leonard Wood.

According to Fort Leonard Wood’s Directorate of Emergency Services, Pfc. Staten went missing around 4:25 p.m. on the Fourth of July after being swept away by the river’s current.
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Search Continues for Missing Marine Tyler Wechsler

UPDATE

Body of missing Marine recovered from Kaau Crater Trail

Missing Person: Tyler Wechsler
KHON News
By Web Staff
Published: April 14, 2017

CrimeStoppers and the Honolulu Police Department are seeking the public’s assistance in locating Tyler Wechsler who was last seen on Friday, April 7, 2017.

Wechsler is a U.S. Marine who was last seen in the Waikiki area at around 3:00 p.m.

Authorities say Wechsler may be emotionally distraught and driving a white colored 2003 Jeep Liberty bearing Hawaii State license number JYY-547.

His family and friends are concerned for his safety and well-being.

Wechsler’s father is now on island joining the search, and said the search is following several leads.
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New Jersey Veteran Marine Still Missing

NJ Marine has been missing for weeks after ‘altercation’ at bar
NJ 1015
By Patrick Lavery
December 21, 2016

James, who served a year each in Iraq and Afghanistan before leaving the Marines in 2012, suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, his sister said on the page, which so far has raised $3,840 of a $5,000 goal.

CLEMENTON — New Jersey State Police have joined Camden County authorities in investigating the disappearance of a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps, missing since Dec. 2.

That night, a Friday, Lance James’ family said, the 29-year-old went to the Hide-A-Way Tavern but was escorted out after some sort of altercation with a fellow patron, according to a GoFundMe page posted by his sister, seeking to raise money for reward money that could be used to help find him.

Clementon police told James to go home, though his jacket and cell phone were still in the bar, according to the page.

James does not own a car, so he left on foot and was later seen on surveillance video about a block from his apartment, it says.

” Lance never made it home that night. It’s almost like he completely vanished. He did not show up for work, call out or pick up his pay check. Lance did not reach out to anyone by any means, neither friends or family have heard from him since. Lance does not own a car,” his sister wrote.
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John Hair has been missing since October 7

UPDATE

Camp Pendleton Marine Missing for Week Safely Returns to Base October 16, 2016 


Camp Pendleton Marine Missing, Family Desperate for Answers
NBC News San Diego



By Dave Summers and Jaspreet Kaur
October 14, 2016

A Camp Pendleton Marine, who went missing days before he was scheduled to report for duty, is now the subject of a missing person investigation in San Diego County.

Lance Corporal John Hair was last seen at the Oceanside Transit Station on Oct. 7 after returning from a two-week leave to visit his mother in Fresno, California. Security cameras at the station captured him at train stations in Los Angeles and Oceanside but his whereabouts after are unknown.

Hair's family told NBC 7 they are worried something may have happened to him.

“Every time I have talked to him, every time I have texted him or called him, even if he didn't answer right away, he answered eventually,” his sister Melissa Hair said.
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Camp Lejeune Marine Missing Since Saturday

HAPPY UPDATE
UPDATE: Alec Seager's wife Kayleigh shared on Facebook last night that her husband has been found safe, albeit hypothermic and severely dehydrated.

She also took the time to thank those who helped her story go viral, and everyone else who aided in the effort to bring her husband home to their family.

Wife of missing Marine pleads for help finding husband
PIX 11 News
BY KRISTINA BEHR
FEBRUARY 8, 2016

The wife of a Marine took to Facebook to plead with her followers to help find her husband.

According to the missing veteran's website, 26-year-old Alec Seager is a U.S. Marine who went missing from Camp Lejeune in North Carolina on Saturday, Feb. 6.

His wife posted his photo saying he "suffers from ptsd,depression, and ;anxiety. He also has mentioned suicidal idealizations."
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Community Comes Together For Family of Missing Marine

Community rallies support for missing Marine's family
KOAA News 5
By Lena Howland
January 31, 2016

FOUNTAIN - A community rallied in support of a grieving southern Colorado family as their decorated Marine was lost at sea in a helicopter crash.

The American Legion Post 38 held a fundraiser dinner for fallen Marine Sergeant Jeffrey Sempler on Saturday evening.

As News5 has reported, Sempler's helicopter crashed off the coast of Hawaii during a routine training session more than a week ago.

The search for him and 11 other missing marines has since been called off.

"It's been really rough, we were hoping that they would find him alive, but that didn't happen," Laurie Allen, the mother of Jeffrey Sempler said.

A mother's worst nightmare.

"I kind of knew it was coming but I didn't want to believe it," Allen said.

She hopped on a plane to Hawaii soon after learning the search mission for her son was called off.

"It's hard, everybody lost so much," she said after meeting with the families of the 11 other marines.

Sergeant Jeffrey Sempler, one of 12 missing Marines, now presumed dead.
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KOAA.com | Continuous News | Colorado Springs and Pueblo

They did it in Pennsylvania too.

DUNCANNON, Pa. (WHTM) – A vigil was held for Sgt. Adam Schoeller, the marine who went missing off the coast of Hawaii, following a training exercise on January 14.

Sunday, the community gathered to honor a friend, son, neighbor, and comrade.

“We’re just going to miss him,” Adam’s father, Ralph Schoeller, said.

Even though Adam didn’t make it home, his memory is a homecoming.

Dad of Missing Fort Myers Marine Asks For Prayers

Missing Marine's dad asks for prayers; search suspended
News Press
Stacey Henson
January 20, 2016

The father of Marine Cpl. Thomas Jardas, of Fort Myers, says the

search for his son off the coast of Hawaii will likely end tonight.

Thomas and 11 other Marines are missing after a Thursday

helicopter crash. (Photo: Courtesy of the Thomas Jardas family.)

A few days ago, Tim Jardas was encouraging his son to see the world.

Today, he's asking for prayers. Cpl. Thomas Jardas, 22, of Fort Myers, is one of 12 Marines missing after a helicopter crash off the coast of Hawaii late Thursday.

Officials suspended the five-day search for the Marines on Tuesday night. The Marine Corps is transitioning to "recovery and salvage efforts."

Tim Jardas could not be reached for comment Tuesday night, but earlier in the day the father sounded resigned.

"Our faith is getting us through this, and I need people to pray for us," he said. "I know my boy is in Heaven, but the rest of the family still needs the prayers."
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Coast Guard Finds 4th Life Raft of Missing Marines

4th life raft recovered from crashed choppers, but still no sign of 12 missing Marines
Hawaii News Now
Jan 19, 2016

There was no indication that any survivors were ever on the three life rafts that were recovered, the Coast Guard said. There was also no one on board the fourth raft that was recovered on Monday.

Search crews had a moment of silence Monday morning for the 12 Marines still missing after two helicopters crashed off Oahu's North Shore. Image Source: U.S. Department of Defense

HALEIWA, OAHU (HawaiiNewsNow)
All four life rafts from the two choppers that collided off Oahu's North Shore have been recovered on Monday but with no sign of any survivors, according to an official with the U.S. Marines.

In spite of this, rescuers on Tuesday will continue searching for the 12 Marines who were on board the two helicopters when they crashed late Thursday. This would be the fifth day of search-and-rescue operations.

More than 60 Marines will continue combing North Shore beaches for debris through the day, while multiple county, state and federal agencies continue to participate in the search effort by air and sea.

Navy divers have also been dispatched, and are using sonar technology around the last known position of the two choppers off Haleiwa. So far, they haven't seen any debris.
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Coast Guard Finds Life Rafts of Missing Marines

Search off Hawaii Finds Life Rafts but No Sign of 12 Marines
ASSOCIATED PRESS HONOLULU
By Audrey McAvoy and Jennifer Sinco Kelleher
Jan 18, 2016

Marine Capt. Timothy Irish said Monday that aircrews wear personal flotation devices with their flight suits and get additional training on top of survival swimming training. There are various ways that life rafts could be inflated, including a cord being pulled by debris, he said.

A search vessel cruises the waters off the beach at Haleiwa, Hawaii, Friday, Jan. 15, 2016.

Authorities searching the area where two Marine helicopters crashed off Hawaii have found some life rafts that were carried aboard the aircraft, but still no sign of the 12 crew members who were on board.

Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Sara Mooers said Monday she believes three life rafts have been recovered so far. Some were inflated, but it was unclear how they came to be inflated, she said.

There is no indication that anyone was aboard the rafts, based on their condition and the lack of any personal effects, she said.

The search for the Marines entered its fourth day Monday, with plans to search into the night. Conditions have improved since the start of the search, with much smaller swells expected Monday.

Rescuers from various agencies have been searching since the Coast Guard was notified late Thursday of the crash by a civilian who saw the aircraft flying and then disappear and a fireball.
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Miss DC is Sister of Missing Marine from Florida

Missing Marine is the brother of Miss DC
WUSA 9 Staff
January 17, 2016

WASHINGTON (WUSA9) -- One of the 12 Marines missing after two helicopters crashed in Hawaii is the brother of Miss District of Columbia Haely Jardas, according to Jardas' Facebook page.

Two helicopter carrying six Marines each crashed off a shore in Hawaii on Thursday. The U.S. Marine Corps released the names of the Marines, including Jardas' brother Cpl. Thomas J. Jardas, 22, of Fort Myers, Florida.

Jardas was crowned Miss District of Columbia in 2015 and competed in Miss America 2016.

The Miss District of Columbia Scholarship Program released the following statement Saturday on Facebook:

"Our thoughts and prayers are with Haely and the entire Jardas family. Haely's brother was one of the marines involved in the helicopter crash in Hawaii yesterday. Please help us pray for his safe return.

A special thank you to the USO and TAPS who helped get Haely and one of our volunteers escorted though security and completely taken care of to get her home to be with her family."
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Marine From Florida Among Missing After Helicopters Collided

Marines Identify 12 Missing After Helicopter Crash Off Hawaii
NBC News
by PHIL HELSEL
January 17, 2016

The Marine Corps on Saturday released the names of 12 Marines missing after two helicopters apparently collided in mid-air off the coast of Oahu Thursday, as the search continued for the missing air crew for a second day.

The missing air crew were identified as:

Maj. Shawn M. Campbell, 41, College Station, Texas.

Capt. Brian T. Kennedy, 31, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Capt. Kevin T. Roche, 30, St. Louis, Missouri.

Capt. Steven R. Torbert, 29, Florence, Alabama.

Sgt. Dillon J. Semolina, 24,Chaska, Minnesota.

Sgt. Adam C. Schoeller, 25, Gardners, Pennsylvania.

Sgt. Jeffrey A. Sempler, 22, Woodruff, South Carolina.

Sgt. William J. Turner, 25, Florala, Alabama.

Cpl. Matthew R. Drown, 23, Spring, Texas.

Cpl. Thomas J. Jardas, 22, Fort Myers, Florida.

Cpl. Christopher J. Orlando, 23, Hingham, Massachusetts.

Lance Cpl. Ty L. Hart, 21, Aumsville, Oregon.

Coast Guard and other aircraft and ships spent a second day searching for the missing Marines, but weather and high swells were hampering the effort.

As of 8 a.m. Saturday, searchers had scoured more than 5,000 square nautical miles, the Coast Guard said.
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Sergeant Dillon Semolina

‘He Was Just A Fun-Loving Kid’: Missing Marine Left Mark On Community

Corporal Christopher Orlando
Family of missing Hingham Marine speak about son

Sgt. Adam C. Schoeller
PHILADELPHIA MARINE AMONG 12 MISSING AFTER HELICOPTER CRASH IN HAWAII

Body of Missing Marine Sgt. Tristan Clinger Found

UPDATE DECEMBER 28, 2015

Death of Marine from joint base under investigation
NJ.com
By Kevin Shea
December 28, 2015

JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST — The death of a Marine assigned to a unit at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst remained under investigation Monday by federal authorities, officials said.

Sgt. Tristan Clinger was found dead Saturday on the base. His wife reported him missing on Dec. 20, said base spokesman Air Force Maj. Omar Villarreal.

Clinger is originally from Jefferson County, Ky. outside Louisville. He was 28 years old.

Villarreal said the Marine's death was under investigation by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and they are being assisted by military authorities on the joint base.

Clinger was a helicopter mechanic with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 772, part of the Marine Aircraft Group 49 on base.

The unit is in the Marine reserves, but Clinger was on active duty, base officials said.
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Search for Missing Marine, Father Ends in Tragedy
NBC 10 News
By David Chang and Morgan Zalot

The week-long search for a missing local Marine ended in tragedy this weekend when his body was found during a search on Saturday, according to his family and a search team leader. Officials and relatives have not yet said where Sgt. Tristan Clinger was found or how he died.

Clinger, 28, a father of two, went missing on Dec. 20 around 4 p.m. when he left Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst on foot, according to his wife.
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Marine Sgt. Tristan Clinger, 28, who has served in the military for five years, was last seen around 4 p.m. on Dec. 20 at the joint base, NBC10 reported.

UPDATE from FOX

“When you're in the military, like he felt that he couldn't get help because he felt that if he tried to get help, they would kick him out, and he would lose his job," his wife told FOX29. "And he just saw his life crumbling from that point, so he was afraid to get help.”

Any more questions, see "resilience" training feeding the stigma of getting help to heal along with the bad paper discharges.

Marines Searching Alaska for Missing "Brother"

U.S. Marines who served with missing snowmachiner travel to Alaska to help search
KTUU 2 News
Dan Carpenter Reporter
Dec 16, 2015

It's been one week since Casey Graham went missing during a snowmachine trip out of McGrath.

A Wildlife State Trooper found Graham's snowmachine last week in open water on the Kuskokwim River but nothing else.

Since then, 13 U.S. Marines, who served with Graham in Afghanistan in the 3rd Light Armored Recon Battalion, have made it their mission to find their brother in arms.

"Right now, the plan is we're going to go head to McGrath, meet up with the local SARs (Search and Rescue), help them out any way we can and, hopefully, bring his family a little bit of happiness for the holidays," said Dexter Kunishige who traveled from Twentynine Palms, California.
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Nepal: Marine Helicopter "Found in Burned Condition"

Minister: 3 bodies found with wreckage of missing U.S. helicopter in Nepal
CNN
By Sugam Pokharel, Sumnima Udas and Ed Payne
May 15, 2015

Story highlights

Three bodies have been found with burned aircraft wreckage, says Nepal's defense secretary
A U.S. military helicopter is found on the slopes of a mountain east of Kathmandu, Nepali army official says
The chopper, which had six U.S. Marines and two Nepalis aboard, had been missing since Tuesday

Kathmandu, Nepal (CNN)Three bodies have been found with the wreckage of what's thought to be a missing U.S. Marine helicopter, Nepal's Defense Secretary Ishwori Paudyal said Friday.

The helicopter wreckage was found in a burned condition, Paudyal told CNN.

The news came only hours after a local army official said the wreckage of the helicopter -- missing since Tuesday with six U.S. marines and two Nepali service members on board -- had been found on the steep slopes of a mountain east of Kathmandu.

The American chopper was spotted in the Gorthali area, at an altitude of 11,200 feet, according to Brig. Gen. Binoj Basnet.

The U.S. Joint Task Force confirmed the sighting of possible aircraft wreckage near Charikot. It has not yet commented on the reported discovery of bodies.
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Parents of Missing Marine Veteran Use Social Media

Family of Missing Marine Veteran Launches Social Media Effort 
Marine Corps Times
Derrick Perkins
Staff Writer
March 12, 2015

Advocates of missing Marine-turned-journalist Austin Tice hope urging his supporters to temporarily go dark will shed light on the veteran's whereabouts.

 The #FreeAustinTice campaign, launched last month by international nonprofit Reporters Without Borders at the request of Tice's parents, encourages supporters to don a blindfold, take a photo and head to social media.

After posting the image to Twitter or Facebook with the hashtag, they are encouraged to sign a petition calling on the White House to boost efforts to free Tice.

Tice, a veteran Marine captain who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, went missing in Syria after entering the battle-ravaged nation to cover the intensifying, ever-internecine civil war there.

Tice put a law degree at Georgetown University on hold in 2012 to travel to Syria, where he filed award-winning stories for CBS News, McClatchy Newspapers and the Washington Post.
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