Sergeant Abney was a Light Weapons Infantryman in Company A, 1st Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division. He was taken Prisoner of War while fighting the enemy along the Chongchon River near Kunu-ri in North Korea on 30 November 1950 and died while in captivity on 22 January 1951. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.

Abney was awarded the Purple Heart, the Combat Infantryman's Badge, the Prisoner of War Medal, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal.