Robert Dean Stethem (November 17, 1961 – June 15, 1985) was a United States Navy Seabee diver murdered by Hezbollah terrorists during the hijacking of TWA Flight 847.
Stethem was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star.
He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery, Section 59, Grave 430, near other American victims of international terrorism.
On August 24, 2010, in Yokosuka, Japan, on board the ship named after him – the USS Stethem (DDG-63) – Stethem was made an honorary Master Chief Constructionman (CUCM) by order of the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy.
His brother, Kenneth, accepted the certificate and decorations on behalf of the Stethem family.
On April 24, 2015, Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus presented the Prisoner of War medal to Stethem's parents.
One of the terrorists, Mohammed Ali Hammadi, was arrested two years later in Frankfurt, Germany.
He was tried and convicted of Stethem's murder and sentenced to life in prison but was released in 2005 after serving 19 years.
Three others, Imad Mugniyah, Hassan Izz-Al-Din, and Ali Atwa, were eventually indicted for their involvement in the incident.
In 2002, they were added to the FBI Most Wanted Terrorists list. On February 13, 2008, Mugniyah was killed in an explosion in Damascus, Syria.
Stethem was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star.
He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery, Section 59, Grave 430, near other American victims of international terrorism.
On August 24, 2010, in Yokosuka, Japan, on board the ship named after him – the USS Stethem (DDG-63) – Stethem was made an honorary Master Chief Constructionman (CUCM) by order of the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy.
His brother, Kenneth, accepted the certificate and decorations on behalf of the Stethem family.
On April 24, 2015, Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus presented the Prisoner of War medal to Stethem's parents.
One of the terrorists, Mohammed Ali Hammadi, was arrested two years later in Frankfurt, Germany.
He was tried and convicted of Stethem's murder and sentenced to life in prison but was released in 2005 after serving 19 years.
Three others, Imad Mugniyah, Hassan Izz-Al-Din, and Ali Atwa, were eventually indicted for their involvement in the incident.
In 2002, they were added to the FBI Most Wanted Terrorists list. On February 13, 2008, Mugniyah was killed in an explosion in Damascus, Syria.
