thedrifter
10-30-08, 07:46 AM
Remains of ND native killed in Iraq recovered
By James MacPherson, Associated Press
Published Thursday, October 30, 2008
BISMARCK – The remains of a North Dakota native killed in Iraq nearly three years ago have been recovered along with remains believed to be those of his fiancee, who was an interpreter for the military, his sister and FBI officials say.
Ronald Schulz’s family plans a burial Saturday in Jamestown, a day after his remains are expected to arrive in his hometown.
Schulz’s remains and those of a woman believed to be his fiancee were found by the U.S. military in a grave in September and were turned over to the government, FBI Special Agent E.K. Wilson said Wednesday. He would not say what led the military to the grave.
The Islamic Army in Iraq claimed in December 2005 that it had killed the 40-year-old Schulz, of Eagle River, Alaska. He was working as an electrician when he was kidnapped.
Schulz’s sister, Julie, of Jamestown, said Wednesday that U.S. officials notified the family about a month ago that they believed her brother’s remains had been recovered, along with those of his fiancee, Susan Bushra, an interpreter for the U.S. military, in Iraq.
Julie Schulz said the FBI confirmed her brother’s remains through dental records and DNA provided by family members.
“They were fairly certain it was him before they came to us,” Schulz said.
Wilson said Wednesday that Bushra’s remains have not been positively identified.
“They are still trying to contact her family,” Julie Schulz said. She said her brother met Bushra, who was Kurdish, in Iraq.
A memorial service was held for Schulz in January 2006 in Jamestown. A state judge in April 2006 issued a presumptive death certificate.
Schulz’s family has said he was captured in Iraq on or about Nov. 25, 2005.
They said he had worked earlier in Iraq as a contractor for more than a year. He and Bushra had planned to return to his home in Alaska.
Schulz graduated from Jamestown High School in 1983, then joined the Marines. His family said he served in the Marine Corps from 1984 to 1991 before moving to Alaska.
Ellie
By James MacPherson, Associated Press
Published Thursday, October 30, 2008
BISMARCK – The remains of a North Dakota native killed in Iraq nearly three years ago have been recovered along with remains believed to be those of his fiancee, who was an interpreter for the military, his sister and FBI officials say.
Ronald Schulz’s family plans a burial Saturday in Jamestown, a day after his remains are expected to arrive in his hometown.
Schulz’s remains and those of a woman believed to be his fiancee were found by the U.S. military in a grave in September and were turned over to the government, FBI Special Agent E.K. Wilson said Wednesday. He would not say what led the military to the grave.
The Islamic Army in Iraq claimed in December 2005 that it had killed the 40-year-old Schulz, of Eagle River, Alaska. He was working as an electrician when he was kidnapped.
Schulz’s sister, Julie, of Jamestown, said Wednesday that U.S. officials notified the family about a month ago that they believed her brother’s remains had been recovered, along with those of his fiancee, Susan Bushra, an interpreter for the U.S. military, in Iraq.
Julie Schulz said the FBI confirmed her brother’s remains through dental records and DNA provided by family members.
“They were fairly certain it was him before they came to us,” Schulz said.
Wilson said Wednesday that Bushra’s remains have not been positively identified.
“They are still trying to contact her family,” Julie Schulz said. She said her brother met Bushra, who was Kurdish, in Iraq.
A memorial service was held for Schulz in January 2006 in Jamestown. A state judge in April 2006 issued a presumptive death certificate.
Schulz’s family has said he was captured in Iraq on or about Nov. 25, 2005.
They said he had worked earlier in Iraq as a contractor for more than a year. He and Bushra had planned to return to his home in Alaska.
Schulz graduated from Jamestown High School in 1983, then joined the Marines. His family said he served in the Marine Corps from 1984 to 1991 before moving to Alaska.
Ellie