Robert Stethem

Petty Officer Robert Stethem (November 17, 1961 – June 15, 1985) was a United States Navy diver and Steelworker Second Class. He was tortured and murdered after the commercial airliner he was aboard, TWA Flight 847, was hijacked by Hezbollah terrorists.

Robert Stethem was born in Waterbury, Connecticut, but grew up in Waldorf, Maryland. He was one of four children. Both of his brothers and his father also served in the U.S. Navy. His mother was a civilian Navy administrator. He graduated from Thomas Stone High School in 1980, where he played defensive back on the varsity and junior varsity football team. He joined the Navy shortly after graduating.

In the Navy, he was assigned to the Navy Underwater Construction Team No. 1 at Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia. He was returning from an assignment in Nea Makri, Greece aboard TWA Flight 847 when it was hijacked by members of the Lebanese political and terror organization Hezbollah. They demanded the release of 435 Lebanese and Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

When their demands were not met, Stethem was singled out. The hijackers learned he was a member of the U.S. military. After many hours of being cruelly beaten, tortured, and finally killed by the terrorists, they threw his body from the plane on the tarmac at the Beirut airport. The wounds were so terrible that his body had to be identified by its fingerprints.

Stethem was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery. In 1994, the U.S. Navy launched USS Stethem (DDG-63) in his honor.

One of the hijackers Mohammed Ali Hammadi, was arrested two years later in Frankfurt, Germany. He was tried and convicted of Stethem's murder in Germany and was sentenced to life imprisonment. After serving 19 years, Hammadi was released on parole in mid-December 2005.

Three others, Imad Mugniyah, Hassan Izz-Al-Din and Ali Atwa were eventually indicted for their involvement in the hijacking. In 2002, they were added to the FBI Most Wanted Terrorists list.

A Tribute to An American Hero (excerpt The Greater Waldorf Jaycees - Leadership Training Through Community Service brochure)

Robert Dean Stethem graduated from Thomas Stone High School. He was a good student, a fine athelete, a student governement representative and well respected by his peers and faculty. Following a family tradition of service to their country, Robert joined the U.S. Navy and became a diver and a steelworker assigned to navy Underwater Construction Team One base in Norfolk, Virginia. Robert was one of 153 passangers on TWA Flight 847 from Atlanta to Rome when Arab terrorist highjacked the aircraft. The terrorist singled Robert out and began beating him. They then shot him several times and threw him from the plane, dropping him on the airport runway in Bierut, Lebanon, in June of 1985.

During the previous summer, the Waldorf Jaycees and the Waldorf Little League had come together to construct a critically needed youth sports complex to accommodate the rapidly expanding population of young people in Charles County. We contacted the Stethem family and asked for and received their permission to name the complex in honor of a true American hero, their son, Robert Dean Stethem. Interstate General Corporation, the developers of St. Charles, donated 56 acres of land valued at over $2M. When the Reserve units of the Navy Sea bees became aware of the project, they volunteered their services to construct the facility during their reserve training time. The Jaycees and the Little League raised funds for expense, Charles County Government provided $600K to ensure completion and we signed an agreement with the County to deed them the property. In return, they agreed to operate and maintain the complex.

This six year, $5.5M, complex was completed in 1990. The complex has ten fields, is kept in pristine condition and is used by thousands of Little Leaguers. We have been successful in creating a living memorial to a young American Hero. Members of our community, young and old, are reminded of the price paid by Robert Dean Stethem to retain our freedom and way of life.

See also

• Todd Beamer
• TWA Flight 847
• Aircraft hijacking
• Fawaz Younis

External links

• CNN.com: Germany frees killer of U.S. diver
• Senate remarks in the aftermath of the failed extradition of Hamadei