NY to lower flags to honor soldier lost in WWII

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has ordered flags lowered to half-staff on Monday to honor a World War II Army private from Brooklyn whose remains were recently recovered.

Bernard Gavrin was 29 when he fought in the Battle of Saipan in the Pacific theater in 1944. Gavrin was reported missing in July 1944, after Japanese forces launched a suicide assault, known as a banzai attack, on Gavrin’s unit, the 105th Infantry Regiment.

In recent years, excavations on Saipan by a Japanese nonprofit group have turned up the remains of American and Japanese soldiers.

Military officials say Gavrin’s remains were uncovered last year and identified through dental records and a DNA analysis that matched Gavrin’s nephew.

Burial with full military honors was Friday afternoon at Arlington National Cemetery.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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