A US Marine who reportedly fell overboard and was lost at sea during operations in the Caribbean has been declared dead following an unsuccessful search, officials said Thursday.
Lance Cpl. Chukwuemeka E. Oforah, 21, of Florida, was confirmed dead on Tuesday, three days after falling overboard the USS Iwo Jima, the Marine Corps announced. He was pronounced deceased after a 72-hour search and rescue operation.
“We are all grieving alongside the Oforah family,” said Col. Tom Trimble, commanding officer of the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit. “The loss of Lance Cpl. Oforah is deeply felt across the entire Navy-Marine Corps team. He will be profoundly missed, and his dedicated service will not be forgotten.”
The statement came after a 72-hour search that included five US Navy ships, a rigid-hull inflatable boat, and ten aircraft from the Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force.
Oforah was an infantry rifleman. He joined the Marine Corps in October 2023 and graduated from the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, in February 2024.
He finished the USMC’s School of Infantry in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, and was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment.
He was serving with Battalion Landing Team 3/6, 22nd MEU aboard the USS Iwo Jima when he died.
The circumstances of the occurrence are currently being investigated.