Identifying the identities of four martyrs through DNA testing of remains discovered at Hang Tam Co

According to Thanh Hoa Provincial Police, the Department of Administrative Management of Social Order (Ministry of Public Security) announced that it has obtained the results of DNA testing and matching for the remains of martyrs recently discovered in the Hang Tam Co area, Quang Tri province. The initial results have identified the identities of four martyrs, all from Thanh Hoa province, including martyrs: Tran Thi To, Le Thi Luong, Le Thi Mai and Do Thi Loan.

Thanh Hoa police organize to collect DNA samples of relatives of unidentified martyrs

Previously, during the process of beautifying the landscape of Hang Tam Co, the construction unit discovered a buried cave entrance right next to the main cave - where people have set up an altar to commemorate the martyrs for many years. When the cave entrance was opened, the construction team discovered a number of remains suspected to be those of martyrs who died in the war. Immediately after receiving the information, the authorities collected samples and organized analysis, matching the DNA between the newly discovered remains and the martyrs' relatives.

In particular, the National Institute of Forensic Medicine and the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology conducted DNA sequencing on the remains collected from Hang Tam Co. Based on the list of martyrs provided by the Department of Home Affairs of Quang Tri province, the Department of Administrative Police for Social Order urgently reviewed the data of martyrs' relatives whose DNA samples had been collected and integrated into the National Population Database. Thereby, 18 relatives of 11 martyrs' families were identified for comparison. From this result, the Department coordinated with local police, including Thanh Hoa provincial police and Genstory Company to collect biological samples and conduct DNA sequencing on the martyrs' relatives.

After analyzing and comparing data from the remains' DNA samples and relatives' DNA samples, the identities and information of the four martyrs' remains that were recently discovered at Hang Tam Co were determined. This is the result of close coordination between the police force and relevant agencies in implementing the Project "Identifying remains of martyrs with missing information" according to Decision No. 150 of the Prime Minister .

During this entire process, Thanh Hoa Provincial Police played a particularly important role, directly coordinating the review and verification of information of martyrs from Thanh Hoa; mobilizing and guiding relatives to provide biological samples; at the same time organizing sample collection and transfer according to the correct procedure, contributing to shortening the analysis time and promptly providing appraisal results.

Currently, the Department of Administrative Police for Social Order continues to coordinate with relevant units to complete the dossier, expand the verification of the identities of the remaining remains, and ensure that the work of paying tribute to martyrs is carried out solemnly, carefully and accurately.

Quoc Huong and collaborators

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/xac-dinh-danh-tinh-4-liet-si-thong-qua-giam-dinh-adn-hai-cot-phat-hien-tai-hang-tam-co-269662.htm