US Soldier Is Alive In Vietnam 44 Years After Being Left Behind

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by Quigley_Sharps, Apr 26, 2013.


  1. Quigley_Sharps

    Quigley_Sharps The Badministrator Administrator Founding Member

    New Documentary Says This US Soldier Is Alive In Vietnam 44 Years After Being Left Behind

    Robert Johnson | Apr. 26, 2013, 7:39 AM | 15,295 | 24


    john-robertson-unclaimed-1.
    Movie Unclaimed
    "Unclaimed" premieres April 30 in Canada.
    The new documentary "Unclaimed" purports to introduce the world to former Army Sergeant John Robertson, lost over Vietnam in 1968 and left behind for over four decades.

    The Toronto Star reports Edmonton filmmaker Michael Jorgenson found Robertson, 76, living in a rural Vietnam village stooped with age, unable to speak English, remember his birthday or names of the children he left behind in the U.S.
    It's a story difficult to believe considering the U.S. military places such a priority on bringing every servicemember home icon1. , whenever possible.
    Jorgenson told The Star he was also skeptical when Vietnam vet Tom Faunce came to him and explained a man he'd found in Vietnam was a former "Army brother" listed as killed in action and forgotten. He says he became convinced only after going to Vietnam and meeting Robertson himself.
    What he found was revealed to filmgoers in an invitation-only screening of "Unclaimed" at a Toronto theater earlier this month.
    From The Star:
    There is physical proof of Robertson’s birthplace, collected in dramatic fashion onscreen; a tearful meeting in Vietnam with a soldier who was trained by Robertson in 1960 and said he knew him on sight; and a heart-wrenching reunion with his only surviving sister — 80-year-old Jean Robertson-Holly — in Edmonton in December 2012 that left the audience at the Toronto screening wiping away tears.
    Jorgenson encountered so much resistance from the U.S. military making his film that he says he's convinced one "high-placed government source" was telling the truth when he said, “It’s not that the Vietnamese won’t let him (Robertson) go; it’s that our government doesn’t want him.”
    Wringing out the details and talking to Robertson's American family seems to have been a gut-wrenching affair. The children whose names he couldn't recall declined DNA testing at the last minute with no explanation.
    None of that mattered to Robertson who says he fulfilled his wish of seeing his American kids one more time before he dies.
    Robertson is now back in Vietnam, with no desire to leave. "Unclaimed" opens in the U.S. May 12, at the G.I. Film Festival in Washington, D.C.



    Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/johns-robertson-left-in-vietnam-2013-4#ixzz2RaQVPnlD
     
    Motomom34 likes this.
  2. Beano

    Beano Monkey

    US Army JPAC released a report a while back calling this person a fraud....after watching the trailer and reading the story, it seems more like the US doesn't want to be seen as having left someone behind. Any way it's sliced, it seems like it will be a very poignant tale. Looking forward to it.
     
    Brokor likes this.
  3. VHestin

    VHestin Farm Chick

    Big surprise the government won't admit they f***ed up.
     
  4. DarkLight

    DarkLight Live Long and Prosper - On Hiatus

    ...again.
     
    Brokor likes this.
  5. oldawg

    oldawg Monkey+++

    Seems to be a pattern there.
     
  6. NotSoSneaky

    NotSoSneaky former supporter

    I served during this time, but did not go "in country" and all I can think is; How many more ? hissyfit

    This was when I first learned not to trust our government.
     
  7. Sapper John

    Sapper John Analog Monkey in a Digital World

    Any one remember Robert Garwood? Came home in the late 70's or early 80's.
     
  8. jim2

    jim2 Monkey+++

    What did they call him, The Mad Blooper? (garwood)
     
  9. Sapper John

    Sapper John Analog Monkey in a Digital World

    I don't remember. The government claimed that he was a traitor and assited the NVA. Last I heard he was working as a mechanic at a gas station about 50 miles from me. That was about 15 years ago.
     
  10. Brokor

    Brokor Live Free or Cry Moderator Site Supporter+++ Founding Member

    Think about it. The man was probably a hostage, let loose WHO KNOWS how long after captivity. After such time, his past life may have been only a fading memory at best. To be expected to come back to modern society after having been indoctrinated and/or accustomed to a harsh life is nothing to take lightly. This man probably didn't even know where to begin...

    I cannot even BEGIN to imagine the circumstances and the thoughts of such a man. I will not judge him. I do know of the deceit the government is capable of, and I know politics really does play a role here. What a tragic and complicated situation this must be, for the soldier in question and the family.
     
  11. NWPilgrim

    NWPilgrim Monkey++

    Wasn't McCain leading the commission in the 1980s that absolutely, positively guaranteed to the US public that no MIAs or POWs were left in VN?
     
  12. bfayer

    bfayer Keeper Of The Faith

    If this guy turns out to be ligit it does not mean he was left behind.

    There are military folks in every war that go native and assimilate with the local population. It has been happening since the beginning of time.

    We still have Germans and Japanese living in the U.S. from after they were released from their POW camp. There are still deserters living in North Korea.

    I can guarantee there is more to this story.
     
    Yard Dart likes this.
survivalmonkey SSL seal        survivalmonkey.com warrant canary
17282WuJHksJ9798f34razfKbPATqTq9E7