US Officer Found Dead in Karawang, Suspected of Having a Heart Attack

US soldier, Major Wiliam Walker, was found dead in a forest area in Klari, Karawang, West Java.

KOMPAS/BAHANA PATRIA GUPTA

The Commander-in-Chief of the Indonesian National Defense Forces, Admiral Yudo Margono, and the Commanding General of I Corps, Lieutenant General Xavier T. Brunson, inspected the troops during the opening ceremony of the Super Garuda Shield Joint Exercise 2023 at Puslatpur 5 Baluran, Situbondo, on Thursday (31/8/2023).

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — A United States Army soldier was found dead in a forest area in Karawang Regency, West Java. It is suspected that the soldier died of a heart attack while surveying the location of the Super Garuda Shield joint parachute landing exercise several days ago.

Head of Information Center TNI Major General Nugraha Gumilar, Wednesday (24/4/2024), revealed that the US soldier who died in the Karawang forest was named Major Wiliam Walker from the Aviation Officer unit. Before being found, he was declared missing.

According to Nugraha, Walker went missing when conducting a survey of locations for the Super Garuda Shield (SGS) joint parachute landing exercise on Monday (April 22, 2024). At that time, Walker and other troops were scattered in the forest area to inspect landing locations for the troops.

After the survey was completed and all troops were required to gather at one point, Walker was not seen. He became the only soldier who did not return to the assembly point.

KOMPAS/BAHANA PATRIA GUPTA

The United States army soldiers descended from a helicopter to participate in the opening ceremony of the 2023 Super Garuda Shield Joint Exercise at Puslatpur 5 Baluran, Situbondo, on Thursday (31/8/2023).

When Walker was declared missing, officials immediately began searching for him. Eventually, Walker was found dead in the forest of Karanganyar Village, Klari District, Karawang Regency.

According to Nugraha, there is a possibility that Walker died of a heart attack. "It hurts, it hurts suddenly. Maybe a heart attack," he said.

Also read: Super Garuda Shield 2022, Efforts to Build Mutual Trust

Currently, Walker's body has been evacuated. Nugraha also confirmed that the body of the US soldier had been handled by medical officers.

Garuda Shield is the largest military exercise between Indonesia and the United States, involving other countries. Garuda Shield began in 2009 until present. Due to the extensive coverage of the exercise, it is then called the Super Garuda Shield Joint Combined Exercise (Latgabma).

KOMPAS/BAHANA PATRIA GUPTA

The USS Green Bay is about to dock at the North Jamrud Pier of the Tanjung Perak Port in Surabaya on Wednesday (30/8/2023). They will participate in the multinational military exercise Super Garuda Shield 2023 in Situbondo.

Quoting the Indonesian Military Information Center's website, the military has planned to hold Latgabma Super Garuda Shield 2024. In January 2024, the TNI Headquarters conducted an Initial Planning Conference for Latgabma Super Garuda Shield 2024. At the conference, representatives from 18 friendly countries were present, namely the United States, Australia, Japan, India, Canada, South Korea, Germany, France, Britain, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Singapore, Malaysia, Timor Leste, Vietnam, and Thailand.

Last year, Super Garuda Shield 2023 was held at Puslatpur 5 Baluran, Situbondo, East Java. The exercise involved 2,810 Indonesian military personnel and 2,165 foreign military personnel.