| rdfs:comment | - Details: American Colonel Charles Shelton and his plane were shot down during the Vietnam War in April 29th 1965, his 33 birthday. He was soon captured by the Vietnamese and held as prisoner of war. However, in 1975, when the war ended, he was listed as a prisoner of war, and his family suspected that he was still either being held captive or had escaped.
* Charles Sutton's Grave on Find-A-Grave.com
- Charles E. Shelton (born April 29, 1932) was a United States Air Force officer who was shot down during the Vietnam War over Laos during a reconnaissance mission on April 29, 1965. His 33rd Birthday. His fate is unknown and he was classified as a prisoner of war until 1994, making him the last official U.S. prisoner of war from the Vietnam War. In September 1994, the Air Force reclassified him as killed in action upon the request of his children and after a search of the area where he was captured failed to yield evidence that he might still be alive.
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| abstract | - Details: American Colonel Charles Shelton and his plane were shot down during the Vietnam War in April 29th 1965, his 33 birthday. He was soon captured by the Vietnamese and held as prisoner of war. However, in 1975, when the war ended, he was listed as a prisoner of war, and his family suspected that he was still either being held captive or had escaped. His wife, Marian, began searching for information about Charles. She traveled to the place in Laos where her husband was previously being held at and found that several people had seen him after the war ended. She also received several documents claiming that he was alive up until 1983, which was eighteen years after he was shot down. In 1984, his status was changed back to "Prisoner of War". Marian searched for twenty-five years for information about her husband until she passed away in 1990 from a gunshot to her head. Their children are now searching for information about their missing father. Extra Notes: This case first aired on the November 11, 1992 episode. Results: Solved. In 1994, at the request of Charles' children, the air force changed his status from "prisoner of war" to "killed in action", although his remains were never found. Links: memorial to Shelton
* Charles Sutton's Grave on Find-A-Grave.com
- Charles E. Shelton (born April 29, 1932) was a United States Air Force officer who was shot down during the Vietnam War over Laos during a reconnaissance mission on April 29, 1965. His 33rd Birthday. His fate is unknown and he was classified as a prisoner of war until 1994, making him the last official U.S. prisoner of war from the Vietnam War. After his plane was shot down, Shelton sent a radio report that he had escaped by parachute. A helicopter was dispatched to retrieve him, but was unable to reach him due to poor visibility. Six days after his capture, his wife was informed that villagers said he had been captured by Laotian communist forces. He is believed to have been held as a prisoner of war and his family was told stories of his courage while imprisoned, but he was never released or accounted for. His wife, Marian Shelton, sought to find him and became an active participant in the POW-MIA movement. In October 1990 she committed suicide, apparently due to frustration and despair over her inability to find him. In September 1994, the Air Force reclassified him as killed in action upon the request of his children and after a search of the area where he was captured failed to yield evidence that he might still be alive. At the time of his downing, Shelton held the rank of captain; between then and the time he was declared to be killed in action, he was promoted to the rank of colonel. Shelton was honored at a ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery attended by dignitaries including General Merrill McPeak, Chief of Staff of the Air Force.
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