10 May

SP4 LESLIE H SABO, JR,
506th Infantry, 101st ABN.
Se San, Cambodia
10 May 1970

SP/4 Sabo’s platoon was conducting a reconnaissance patrol in Cambodia when they

were ambushed from all sides. SP/4 Sabo immediately charged the closest enemy position,

destroying it and dispatching the gun crew. From that position, Sabo could see an enemy squad flanking his unit.

Sabo immediately and single-handedly attacked the assaulted an enemy, successfully drawing their fire away from his comrades, allowing them to counter-attack, forcing the enemy to retreat.

Seeing a fellow paratrooper was wounded and stranded in the open, Sabo sprinted across an open field, providing suppressing fire, preventing the enemy from capturing the wounded trooper.

Sabo took up a firing position, using himself to shield his wounded brother.  As he paused to reload, an enemy grenade landed nearby.

SP4 Sabo grabbed the grenade and threw it aside then shielded the wounded soldier with his own body.  The brunt of the blast was absorbed by SP4 Sabo’s body saving his brother’s life.

Although gravely wounded, Sabo again single-handedly charged the enemy bunker that was the source of the grenade, destroying it but taking several additional large-caliber wounds.

As SP/4 Sabo was bleeding to death – he belly crawled to the next enemy bunker and eliminated it with a hand grenade.

This final act of devotion to his fellow soldiers silenced the enemy guns and peppered Sp4 Sabo with shrapnel.

The last lines of Sp/4 Sabo’s Medal of Honor citation read as follows:

“His indomitable courage and complete disregard for his own safety saved the lives of many of his platoon members.  Specialist Four Sabo’s extraordinary heroism and selflessness, above and beyond the call of duty, at the cost of his life, are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, Company B, 3d Battalion, 506th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division, and the United States Army.