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name
RAKOFF, Leo - Date of
birth
30 August 1918 -
Age
26 - Place of
birth
Manhattan, New York -
Hometown
Manhattan, New York County, New York
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
42039333 -
Rank
Private -
Function
unknown -
Unit
F Company,
2nd Battalion,
325th Glider Infantry Regiment,
82nd Airborne Division
-
Awards
Bronze Star,
Purple Heart
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
27 September 1944 - Place of
death
Kiekberg Woods, Groesbeek, the Netherlands
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Margraten -
Walls of the Missing
* This soldier has been accounted for. A rosette has been placed next to his name.
Immediate family
-
Members
Charles Rakoff (father)
Rose (Peck) Rakoff (mother)
Esther (Kabatchnuk) Rakoff (wife)
More information
Pvt Leo Rakoff attended was a foreman.He enlisted in New York City, New York on 15 September 1943.
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced on 12 August 2025 that Pvt Leo Rakoff has been accounted for.
On 27 September 1944, during Operation Market Garden, Company F attacked German positions in the Kiekberg Woods near Groesbeek, Netherlands. Rakoff was killed in action when an artillery shell exploded near his position. The intensity of battle prevented the recovery of his remains at the time.
In July 1945, British Graves Registration personnel recovered an unknown set of remains from an isolated field grave near Breedeweg and Grafwegen, the Netherlands. The remains, clothed in a uniform bearing an 82nd Airborne Division patch, were turned over to U.S. authorities. The remains could not be identified and were buried as an Unknown at the Netherlands American Cemetery.
In 2016, as part of a comprehensive research effort focused on the missing from Operation Market Garden, DPAA historians recommended this Unknown for disinterment. The remains were exhumed that September and transferred to the DPAA Laboratory for analysis. Using modern forensic techniques, scientists identified the remains as those of Rakoff.
Funeral arrangements are pending (information added January 2026).
Source of information: Peter Schouteten, Raf Dyckmans, Terry Hirsch, www.abmc.gov, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.archives.gov - WWII Enlistment Record, www.findagrave.com - Kathy, www.ww2-airborne.us, www.ancestry.com - Family Tree / Marriage Record, WWII Draft Cards
Photo source: Peter Schouteten