Evening star., 1952-05-12
|Dodd Seizure Believed Planned
AT Least Week in Advance
sy The Assoeiu.ed Pres,

Il BY the Associoted Press
| KOJE ISLAND. Korea. May IL.
die -hard Red prisoners of war
had planned the seizure Of Brig.
Gen. Francis T. Dodd at least q
week in advance. Koje stockade
oficials said today.
/ Gen. Dodd. 52-year-old COM
mander of the u. N. Koje Island
POW camp, was grabbed by Red
1 prisoners Wednesday and held Is
hours. He was released unharmed
Saturday and flown to Seoul yes
terday.
1t. Col. Wilbur r. Raven. al
most captured at the same time.
told newsmen that within minutes
after the Reds grabbed Gen. Dodd
the North Korean prisoners were
waving banners which said:
1--WE captured Dodd. If our
problems are resolved his security
is guaranteed. II there is any
brutal act or shooting his life is.
In danger"
Col. Raven barely escaped cap
ture. He said the prisoner who was
trying to drag him into the COM
pound had been bayoneted by o.
United Nations guard.
Gen. James A. Van Fleet, 9Th
Army commander, made a second
flying visit to Koje today. He was
accompanied by his chief of staff.
Maj. Gen. o. c. Mood.
Twenty-Five correspondents and
photographers also few to Koje
today to inspect the scene on this
island of South Korea where 3d.
900 Chinese and North Korean
prisoners are held.
Raven Held Earlier.
Col. Raven disclosed that one
month before the Dodd incident
Raven himself had been detained
forcibly by the inmates Of Com
pound 76 about three hours.
He said the prisoners had COM
|plained about their food and tried
to force him to eat some cereal
and soup.
II refused" he said. IF they
had invited me to eat would have
done so gladly but they tried to
force it on me and I refused"
Col. Raven was released un-
harmed after the first seizure.
Big. Gen. Charles Colson,
Charleston, S. c., named COM
mander of the POWs after Gen.
Dodd was seized. said the capture
Iof Dodd was planned and exc
|cuted by the Reds apparently to
get a hostage so they could make
certain demands in return for re-
lease of their prisoner"
Contraband Seized.
Col. Raven described the cap
ture in detail.
He said the trouble at Com
pound rs actually started on May
Is, the day before the Dodd kid
mapping. A work detail of prisoners
returning to the compound was
searched and found to have Con
traband" which Col. Raven listed
AS four watches, 18 new pencils,
two rings, three tooth brushes and
a cigarette lighter.
He said the prisoners had sold
clothing or toilet articles to local
citizens and used the money to
buy the contraband.. He said such
exchanges were carried on by the
prisoners and townspeople as the
POW's marched in long lines
through the villages.
Col. Raven said that when the
forbidden articles were taken the
work detail refused to go into
their compound. They agreed only
when told that the articles would
be returned and that Gen. Dodd |
the next day would come to talk
to them.
The next day at 2:30 pm. Gen.
Dodd went to the compound. He
and Col. Raven began talking with
the prisoners through the barbed
wire fence. The Red negotiators
dragged out the talks, he said,
until a work detail went through
the main gate where the con-
ference was being held.
Gate Open Several Minutes.
The gate remained open sew
eral minutes. Col. Raven said he
and Gen. Dodd were too engrossed
in talking with the Reds to notice
the gate.
Several prisoners moved over
to close the gate" Raven said.
land then they got behind us. )"
He said the Red POWs rushed
him and Dodd and that five were
on me and at least IS had hold
of the general"
Col. Raven said he saw Gen.
Dodd struggling with his captors
until the general disappeared be-
hind q compound building. Col.
Raven himself was busy fighting
of his attackers. He finally
kicked and fought free with the
help Of Capt. Joseph s. Hunter,
who was in charge of
Compound rs, and an American
guard.
He said the guard had to bay
onet one of the prisoners in the
face to drive him away.
AS soon as he was grabbed,
Col. Raven started yelling, Get
the Infantry"
He said infantry reinforce
mentS were rushed to Compound
B {. MORRISON PAPER co. S