Remains of missing soldier return to U.S.

LAWRENCE, Mass. The remains of the Army staff sergeant who was missing for more than a year after he was kidnapped in Iraq passed by the Lawrence home of his father Friday as part of a procession that included his family, State Police cruisers and motorcycles ridden by fellow veterans.

Jimenez's parents got out of a car in the procession and waved to the roughly 50 people waiting in front of the home. His father, Ramon "Andy" Jimenez, says it is better to have his son's remains home than to never know his fate.

Jimenez and two other members of the Army's 10th Mountain Division were captured on May 12, 2007, during an ambush about 20 miles south of Baghdad.

A funeral will be held for Jimenez on Saturday. He will be buried later in New York.