The remains of the second U.S. Army soldier who went missing during military exercises in Morocco have been recovered, the Army confirmed on Wednesday.
Identification of the Soldier
The soldier was identified as Spc. Mariyah Symone Collington, a 19-year-old from Tavares, Florida, according to U.S. military Europe and Africa. She served as an air and missile defense crew member and was assigned to Charlie Battery, 5th Battalion, 4th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command.
Collington entered the Regular Army's Delayed Entry Program in 2023 before beginning active-duty service in 2024. She completed Basic Combat Training and Advanced Individual Training at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, as a 14P air and missile defense crewmember. She reported to her unit in Ansbach, Germany, in February 2025 and was promoted to specialist on May 1, 2026.
Recovery Operation
“Royal Moroccan Armed Forces transported the Soldier’s remains by a Moroccan helicopter to the morgue of Moulay El Hassan Military Hospital in Guelmim, Morocco,” the statement read, concluding a multinational search operation that utilized air, naval, and artificial intelligence assets.
The announcement came days after the military recovered the remains of 1st Lt. Kendrick Lamont Key Jr., a 14A Air Defense Artillery officer. Both soldiers fell off a cliff during an off-duty recreational hike in Morocco. Their remains are en route to the United States.
A spokesperson for U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa told The Associated Press that the circumstances surrounding the incident remain under investigation.
Search Efforts
The two soldiers were reported missing on May 2 after participating in African Lion, an annual multinational military exercise held in Morocco. Their disappearance triggered a search operation involving more than 1,000 U.S. and Moroccan military and civilian personnel, the SETAF-AF spokesperson added.
Assets deployed during the operation included a U.S. Navy P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, unmanned aerial systems, thermal and ISR sensors, an unmanned underwater vehicle, side-scan sonar, a Moroccan multibeam echosounder, and U.S. Coast Guard drift modeling capabilities.
African Lion Exercise
African Lion 26, a U.S.-led exercise launched in April, spans four countries—Morocco, Tunisia, Ghana, and Senegal—with more than 7,000 personnel from over 30 nations. Since 2004, it has been the largest U.S. joint military exercise in Africa.
In 2012, two U.S. Marines were killed and two others injured during a helicopter crash in Morocco’s southern city of Agadir while taking part in the exercises.
