U.S. Army, PFC Paul Bustamante
Birth: July 29, 1949 Albuquerque, New Mexico
Death: 16 Sep 1968 (aged 19) Hà Nội Municipality, Vietnam
Burial Site: Mount Calvary Cemetery Albuquerque, Bernalillo County, New Mexico, USA | PLOT: Section 3, Row 3
Awards
PFC Bustamante was the son of Casimiro Bustamante and Juliana Lucero who lived in Martinez town Albuquerque. PFC Bustamante was a graduate of Albuquerque High school. After graduating from Marine Boot camp in September 1967 he was assigned to the Combined Action Platoon 3-3-5., which involved placing a squad of Marines in a village where they lived, fought, and sometimes died among the South Vietnamese.1 On 16 Sep 1968, during a combined action patrol four Marines from Combined Action Platoon 3-3-5 were killed, including PFC Bustamante, of Albuquerque, New Mexico. Bustamante was reported as dying from a gunshot wound to the head, but no body was recovered. He was listed as Missing In Action. A body was recovered September 29 and identified October 6, 1968 as being that of PFC Paul Bustamante.2
Images & Documents
Bustamante, Paul
Grave Marker of Paul Bustamante
Notes:
1. Ancestry.com, All Records for Paul Bustamante, and U.S. Vietnam War Military Casualties, 1956- 1998.
2. “Bustamante,” Albuquerque Journal, 10 October 1968, Newspaper.com
3. Photos by, Find A grave.com, U.S. Army, PFC Paul Bustamante
Bio organized by Eloy Garcia Ph.D. CNMC