St. Paul Korean War POW Finally Laid To Rest

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MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A grateful nation never forgets, especially 66 years after a soldier's sacrifice.

Sgt. Gerald Mueller was taken prisoner by the North Koreans after a battle in February of 1951.

He later died following a grueling march to a prisoner-of-war camp.

His remains were repatriated and only recently identified using DNA.

Sgt. Gerald Mueller (credit: The Mueller Family)

Sgt. Mueller was given a proper burial Wednesday at Fort Snelling National Cemetery, and his family were able to finally remove "unknown" from his marble marker.

"'In memory of Gerald Joseph Mueller, POW Korean War.' And that marker will be replaced at his final resting place," said Greg Beckweth, Sgt. Mueller's half-brother. "Just an absolute hero."

Mueller's service was held at Holy Spirit Catholic Church in St. Paul, the same church where he was married months before he went missing in action.

The military has identified more than 180 MIA's from World War II, Korea and Vietnam so far this year.