Remains of second US soldier who went missing during military exercises in Morocco have been recovered | Morocco
The remains of a second U.S. Army soldier missing during military exercises in Morocco have been recovered, the military said Wednesday, ending a multinational search operation that deployed air, sea and artificial intelligence assets.
In the statement made by the US Army Europe and Africa, it was stated that the soldier was Spc Mariyah Symone Collington from Taveres, Florida. He was 19 years old.
The statement said, “The Royal Moroccan Armed Forces transferred the soldier’s body to the morgue of the Moulay El Hassan military hospital in Guelmim, Morocco, with a Moroccan helicopter.”
Collington served as an air and missile defense crew member and was assigned to command Charlie battery, fifth battalion, fourth air defense artillery regiment, 10th army air and missile defense, U.S. Army Europe and Africa said.
Collington entered the Regular Army’s Delayed Entry Program in 2023 before entering active duty service in 2024. He completed basic combat training and advanced individual training at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, as a 14P air and missile defense crew member. He reported to Charlie Battery, fifth battalion, fourth air defense artillery regiment, in Ansbach, Germany, in February 2025 and was promoted to specialist on 1 May 2026.
His awards and decorations include the military service ribbon.
The announcement came days after the military said the remains of another soldier, 1st Lt. Kendrick Lamont Key Jr., a 14A air defense artillery officer, had been found. Two soldiers fell off a cliff during an off-duty walk in Morocco. Their remains departed for the United States.
A spokesman for the U.S. Army Southern Europe Task Force Africa (SETAF-AF) told The Associated Press that the circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation.
The two soldiers were reported missing on May 2 after participating in African Lion, an annual multinational military exercise in Morocco. Their disappearance triggered a search operation involving more than 1,000 US and Moroccan military and civilian personnel, the SETAF-AF spokesman added.
African Lion 26 is a US-led exercise that launched in April in four countries: Morocco, Tunisia, Ghana and Senegal, involving more than 7,000 personnel from more than 30 countries. It was the largest joint US military exercise in Africa since 2004.
In 2012, two US sailors died and two others were injured in a helicopter crash that occurred while participating in exercises in Agadir, southern Morocco.
