Arann, Richard Maxwell, CW2

by Cpt. Robert Urquhart, Signal Officer, 10th Combat Aviation Battalion, 17th Aviation Group
Vietnam - 1969 http://army.togetherweserved.com/profile/236166

My worst moment was the fragging of CW2 Richard Maxwell Arann.

Chief Arann was on his second tour in Vietnam when he died on the night of 24 June 1969.

I was the Bn Signal Officer for the 10th CAB at Dong Ba Thin when CW2 Arann was fragged by PVT William E. Sutton, a Pole lineman in my Signal Platoon. Sutton was angry at his CO, Cpt Angeli because he recieved an Article 15 for smoking pot. He detonated a claymore outside the billet where he thought Angeli would be sleeping. He killed Arann by mstake while he lay in his bunk in the hooch next door to mine. I was also asleep when it happened. I awoke to the explosion and buckshot holes all over the wall. At first I thought we were being mortared again, a regualar occurance at Dong Ba Thin.

The sirens went off as we scrambled to our defensive positions. Ilumination mortars lit up the perimiter and the 92nd AHC gunnies (Sidekick) were airborne within minutes but soon confirmed that we were not under attack. At least not from Charlie. When the all clear sounded we returned to our hooches. I checked out the damage to the adjacent quarters and when I got to WO Arann's room I saw Doc doing all he could to comfort him but Arann didn't make it. He died in Doc's arms.

There was a huge hole in the outside wall of his hooch were the Claymore had been dentonated.

Colonel Stanley, our Battalion Commander initiated an investigation and I soon learned it was done by one of my men, a pole lineman in my platoon.

Sutton was Court Martialed and sentenced to life imprisonment.

From George Lepre - " Ex Pvt William E. Sutton will be released from the Federal Prison in Yazoo City, MS. Although most military offenders serve their sentences at Leavenworth, during the early 1970's a number of particularly incorrigible inmates were sent out into the regular Federal system. Sutton, a Signal wireman in HHC, 10th Aviation Bn. 1st Aviation Bde, hed recieved an Article 15 for smoking marijuana from his Company Commander, Cpt Robert Angeli. On the night of 23-24 June 1969, Sutton placed a claymore outside the CO's quarters and detonated it. However he was so stoned when he did it that he placed it in the wrong part of the building and he killed CW2 Richard M. Arann by mistake. He then ran to a second mine he had set up to kill the company first sergeant. This mine too was set up in the wrong place and it seriously wounded the battalion sergeant major, Grant McBee.

CW2 Arann was an outstanding pilot and was on his second tour in Vietnam.

Sutton proved to be a disiplinary problem while he was at Leavenworth. He was charged with failing to stand count, disrespect to a guard, homosexual assault and a number of other offenses. As a result, he was quickly sent to the regular Federal system.

He was briefly paroled in 1980 but quickly re-arrested on a violation of this conditional release (I presume he burned a piss test).

George Lepre
Co. A, 2d Bn., 4th Inf. (Warriors)"

I heard latter that he was killed in a drug shoot out after his final release. I have not been able to verify this but I sure would like to know.

I always felt responsibe somehow, since Sutton was in my Signal Detachment. I keep telling myself that I should have known, saw some signs or something.

I was assigned as the Officer to assist Arrons next of kin and had to correspond with his wife and assist her in anyway I could.

This was a memory that haunts me to this very day.