On June 24, information from Thanh Hoa Provincial Police said that through DNA testing results and comparing relative information, functional agencies have just identified the remains of martyrs buried at grave number 52, row 2, lot B, area B, Nga Bay - Phung Hiep Martyrs' Cemetery, Can Tho City as belonging to martyr Nguyen Trong Cat, native of Minh Dan commune, Trieu Son district, now Minh Dan commune, Thanh Hoa province.
Martyr Nguyen Trong Cat was born in 1952, formerly Deputy Platoon Leader, fought in the Southern battlefield and heroically sacrificed on October 20, 1972. For more than half a century, martyr Cat's grave has been located in the Southern cemetery, while his family has always longed to find his resting place.
After 54 years, that desire has become a reality. Through DNA matching of relatives, the identity of martyr Nguyen Trong Cat has been accurately identified, closing the family's long search journey.
In Thanh Hoa, there are still tens of thousands of martyrs who have not been identified or lack information about their graves. The DNA sample of martyr Nguyen Trong Cat's relative is one of more than 37,000 DNA samples that Thanh Hoa Provincial Police have coordinated with functional units to collect during peak periods in 2025.
Thanh Hoa is also one of the localities that completed early the collection of DNA biological samples of relatives of martyrs, and is also the locality with the largest number of collected DNA samples of relatives of martyrs in the country.
To date, Thanh Hoa has had 8 martyrs identified by DNA testing method.
According to Thanh Hoa Provincial Police, accurately identifying martyr Nguyen Trong Cat is of great significance in the context that the whole country is promoting the search, repatriation and identification of martyr remains that lack information.
Along with the peak period of collecting DNA biological samples of relatives of martyrs implemented by the Ministry of Public Security, the "Operation 500 Days and Nights" of the Ministry of National Defense is also being implemented drastically nationwide, with the desire to bring martyrs back to their families and homeland with their own names.
