Valley Sergeant Among 4 Soldiers Killed In Europe Incident

GLENDALE, CA — A U.S. Army sergeant from Los Angeles County was among four soldiers killed during a training exercise in Europe, authorities confirmed Tuesday.

Sgt. Edvin F. Franco, 25, of Glendale was among a crew that disappeared in Lithuania on March 25. He was the married father of a newborn son.

The soldiers, were in the town of Pabradén in a M88 Hercules tactical vehicle training in a swamp. Along with Franco, Sgt. Jose Duenez Jr., 25, of Joliet, Illinois, and Pfc. Dante D. Taitano, 21, of Dededo, Guam died in the crash, accordin to the Army's 3rd Infantry Division.

His was among the bodies of the three soldiers recovered Monday after U.S., Polish and Lithuanian armed forces and authorities dug the M88 Hercules vehicle out of a peat bog at the expansive Gen. Silvestras Žukauskas training ground in the town of Pabradė. The fourth soldier was found dead on Tuesday, and his identity is being withheld pending nitification of his family.

The soldiers, part of the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division.

“This past week has been devastating. Today our hearts bear the weight of an unbearable pain with the loss of our final Dogface Soldier,” Maj. Gen. Christopher Norrie, 3rd Infantry Division commander, said in a statement Tuesday. “Though we have received some closure, the world is darker without them.”

Franco was praised for leadership and drive.

"Sgt. Edvin Franco's legacy will remain with us always," Capt. Madyson K. Wellens, diesel forward support troop commander for the 5th Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, said in a statement. "His infectious smile and genuine joy in being with his team were matched only by the tenacity and drive. He never asked more of his soldiers than he was willing to give himself -- a true testament to his character. More than an exceptional leader and soldier, Edvin was a friend whose influence touched so many."

Franco had previously been identified by his wife, Georgia, as one of the missing soldiers.

According to the Army, Franco was an M1 Abrams tank system maintainer who had been in the Army for more than six years. He did his initial training at Fort Benning, Georgia, and was assigned to the 5th Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment in February 2019. He served in Korea in 2020 and Germany in 2022.

His awards included the Army Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster, Army Achievement Medal with oak leaf cluster, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal and Global War on Terror Service Medal.

GoFundMe pages to support Franco's family were established at gofundme.com/f/support-for-duenez-franco-families and gofundme.com/f/for- georgia-and-baby-preston.

Hundreds of Lithuanian and U.S. soldiers and rescuers took part in the search through the thick forests and swampy terrain around Pabradė, 6 miles (10 kilometers) west of the border with Belarus. The 63-ton (126,000-pound) armored vehicle was discovered March 26 submerged in 15 feet (4.5 meters) of water, but it took days to pull it out of the bog.

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 tons of gravel and earth to help the recovery.

Navy divers maneuvered through thick layers of mud, clay and sediment with zero visibility to reach the vehicle Sunday evening and attach steel cables so it could be pulled out. When just three of the four bodies were found, the divers began a search of the bog area for the fourth.

Gen. Christopher Donahue, commander of U.S. Army Europe and Africa, expressed gratitude to the U.S. allies who sent troops and equipment to help in the search and recovery.

“I can’t say enough about the support our Lithuanian Allies have provided us. We have leaned on them, and they, alongside our Polish and Estonian Allies — and our own Sailors, Airmen and experts from the Corps of Engineers — have enabled us to find and bring home our Soldiers," Donahue said in the statement. "This is a tragic event, but it reinforces what it means to have Allies and friends.”

City News Service and the Associated Press contributed to this report.