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Remains of Pennsylvania Marine who died in WWII identified

Reserve Pvt. Joseph F. Boschetti died on the first day of fighting against the Japanese on the island of Betio

  • The Associated Press
FILE - In this Nov. 1943 file photo, sprawled bodies are seen on the beach of Tarawa atoll testifying to the ferocity of the battle for this stretch of sand during the U.S. invasion of the Gilbert Islands. A nonprofit organization that searches for the remains of U.S. servicemen lost in past conflicts has found what officials believe are the graves of more than 30 Marines and sailors killed in one of the bloodiest battles of World War II.

 FILE / AP Photo

FILE - In this Nov. 1943 file photo, sprawled bodies are seen on the beach of Tarawa atoll testifying to the ferocity of the battle for this stretch of sand during the U.S. invasion of the Gilbert Islands. A nonprofit organization that searches for the remains of U.S. servicemen lost in past conflicts has found what officials believe are the graves of more than 30 Marines and sailors killed in one of the bloodiest battles of World War II.

(Philadelphia) — The government says the remains of a Marine who died in a Pacific island battle during World War II have been identified as a 23-year-old Philadelphia man.

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency says the remains of Marine Corps Reserve Pvt. Joseph F. Boschetti were accounted for on July 8.

The agency says Boschetti was a member of Company A, 1st Battalion, 18th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force on Nov. 20, 1943.

He died on the first day of fighting against the Japanese on the island of Betio in the Tarawa Atoll of the Gilbert Islands.

Boschetti was identified following testing of remains initially declared unidentifiable that were transferred to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Hawaii in 1949.

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