PENNSAUKEN, N.J. -- A Pennsauken family is asking the public for prayers to bring back their son, who military officials say was among several Americans captured by Iraqi forces over the past weekend.

The family of Sgt. James Riley has had to grapple with the harsh reality that one of their loved ones is a prisoner of war.

Yellow ribbons have been showing up all over Pennsauken in support of Riley.

Riley's parents said that they are facing their worst fears and praying for the best.

"The biggest fear is that they'll bring him back in a coffin," James' mother, Jane, said.

"They're a little wacko, and the hope is that he'll come back," said Athol Riley, James' father.

The last time the Rileys spoke with their son was in February, moments before he took off from Fort Bliss with his unit.

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New Jersey Soldier Held As POW

"He (said he)was leaving in 10 minutes and we have had one letter from him since. Then, we got a phone call yesterday from a friend who said they saw something on the Internet," Jane Riley said.

What the friend had seen was a still picture taken from an Iraqi video.

"I didn't recognize my son because he didn't have his glasses and he needed a shave," Jane Riley said.

James Riley, 31, had been part of the maintenance unit that had taken a wrong turn on the battlefield that left seven of his comrades dead and himself and four others in captivity.

Riley would visit his family every summer and spent time with the neighbors, who said he was a really nice guy.

In a video clip that aired Sunday on Iraqi television, Riley identified himself by speaking into a microphone thrust in front of him by his captors.

With his hands in his lap, he answered questions in a clipped fashion and said he was with the 507th Maintenance, part of the 111th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, stationed in Fort Bliss.

Along with footage of the prisoners, the Iraqi tape contained gruesome images of bodies identified as dead U.S. soldiers.