Sam Ybarra
Encyclopedia
Sam Ybarra was a private
in the United States
' Tiger Force
commando unit, assigned to the 101st Airborne Division
during the Vietnam War
.
He was raised in Arizona
by his Apache
mother from the age of five, when his Mexican American
father was killed in a brawl. He later attended Globe High School
, and was arrested four times for disturbing the peace
and underage drinking.
He joined the army in 1966, along with his childhood friend Kenneth Green, where he became attached to the Tiger Force unit. He was initially found to have shot an unarmed boy in May 1967, and two months later he and Green bragged about raping and killing a young girl during a mission outside Tam Ky. The two both engaged in the Tiger Force practise of cutting off trophy ears from their victims.
Ybarra was noted by the Stars and Stripes
magazine as having recorded the 1000th kill of Operation Wheeler.
Green was killed on September 29, 1967, which friends claim threw Ybarra over the edge as he vowed to avenge his friend's death, and reportedly became one of the unit's worst killers - by 1968 he had been transferred out of the unit to an artillery company. The following year he faced court martial for insubordination and drug use, and a year later was dishonorably discharged in April, 1969. Ybarra would later be named in 7 of the 30 allegations that the Army would later investigate the unit for.
Once discharged, he couldn't be compelled to testify to the investigations against him, and declined three times. He died in 1982, living with his mother on the San Carlos Apache Reservation in Arizona, reportedly contrite and depressed over his role in the war.
Private (rank)
A Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank .In modern military parlance, 'Private' is shortened to 'Pte' in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries and to 'Pvt.' in the United States.Notably both Sir Fitzroy MacLean and Enoch Powell are examples of, rare, rapid career...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
' Tiger Force
Tiger Force
Tiger Force was a task force of the United States Army, 1st Battalion , 327th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade , 101st Airborne Division, which fought in the Vietnam War....
commando unit, assigned to the 101st Airborne Division
101st Airborne Division
The 101st Airborne Division—the "Screaming Eagles"—is a U.S. Army modular light infantry division trained for air assault operations. During World War II, it was renowned for its role in Operation Overlord, the D-Day landings on 6 June 1944, in Normandy, France, Operation Market Garden, the...
during the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
.
He was raised in Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
by his Apache
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
mother from the age of five, when his Mexican American
Mexican American
Mexican Americans are Americans of Mexican descent. As of July 2009, Mexican Americans make up 10.3% of the United States' population with over 31,689,000 Americans listed as of Mexican ancestry. Mexican Americans comprise 66% of all Hispanics and Latinos in the United States...
father was killed in a brawl. He later attended Globe High School
Globe High School
Globe High School is a high school in Globe, Arizona. It is the only high school in the Globe Unified School District, which also operates High Desert Middle School and Copper Rim Elementary School....
, and was arrested four times for disturbing the peace
Disturbing the Peace
Disturbing the Peace is the second studio album by Alcatrazz, and is the only one featuring Steve Vai on guitar. One of the singles, God Blessed Video, can be found on the fictional radio station, V-Rock, on Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. Weeks on Chart: 7, Peak: #133...
and underage drinking.
He joined the army in 1966, along with his childhood friend Kenneth Green, where he became attached to the Tiger Force unit. He was initially found to have shot an unarmed boy in May 1967, and two months later he and Green bragged about raping and killing a young girl during a mission outside Tam Ky. The two both engaged in the Tiger Force practise of cutting off trophy ears from their victims.
Ybarra was noted by the Stars and Stripes
Stars and Stripes (newspaper)
Stars and Stripes is a news source that operates from inside the United States Department of Defense but is editorially separate from it. The First Amendment protection which Stars and Stripes enjoys is safeguarded by Congress to whom an independent ombudsman, who serves the readers' interests,...
magazine as having recorded the 1000th kill of Operation Wheeler.
Green was killed on September 29, 1967, which friends claim threw Ybarra over the edge as he vowed to avenge his friend's death, and reportedly became one of the unit's worst killers - by 1968 he had been transferred out of the unit to an artillery company. The following year he faced court martial for insubordination and drug use, and a year later was dishonorably discharged in April, 1969. Ybarra would later be named in 7 of the 30 allegations that the Army would later investigate the unit for.
Once discharged, he couldn't be compelled to testify to the investigations against him, and declined three times. He died in 1982, living with his mother on the San Carlos Apache Reservation in Arizona, reportedly contrite and depressed over his role in the war.