A man accused of posing as a highly decorated war veteran faces federal charges of falsely wearing heroic medals of honor. Angel Manuel Ocasio-Reyes, 48, was charged under the Stolen Valor Act.
This is the fourth time in 12 months someone has been prosecuted under the Stolen Valor Act, according to Amy Filjones, a spokeswoman with the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Tampabay.com reports.
A separated Marine who says he lied about earning a Purple Heart while serving in Afghanistan faces charges of misrepresentation of decorations in Obion County.
Reports Marine Corps Times.
A Palm Springs man who surprised former classmates at his high school reunion in Martinez when he showed up in a Marine Corps uniform has pleaded guilty to wearing military medals that he never earned.
He will face as much as a year in prison and up to a $100,000 fine when he is sentenced March 1. He remains free on $10,000 bond.
The SFGate reports.
Kenneth Jerome Nelson was once celebrated as a war hero and the unofficial caretaker of a monument dedicated to Vietnam veterans in the shadow of the California State Capitol.
Now, he’s known as a liar.
The veterans activist pleaded guilty Monday in U.S. District Court in Sacramento to wearing a Silver Star that had not been awarded to him, a misdemeanor. Nelson, 60, will be sentenced March 1 to a violation of the federal Stolen Valor Act, which prohibits wearing unearned military decorations, authorities said.
Here is a good site for information about Stolen Valor Act issues.
Web Site Aims to Uncover Fakers in Fatigues
I’ve posted before about different cases where a service-member or civilian have “invented” their military career. Two recent examples are here and here. Now there’s another. Military.com reports that a retired senior chief petty officer appears to have fabricated his presence in USS COLE when the ship was attacked.
In early November, retired Senior Chief Jeffrey Sparenberg was the guest of honor at military heritage day in Delaware.
Sparenberg spent 23 years in the Navy, including time on the destroyer Cole, and he was at Fort DuPont State Park that day to donate a flag that he said flew over the Cole shortly after it was attacked nine years ago.
| California man is facing a criminal charge for wearing numerous Navy medals despite the fact he never served in the military, federal prosecutors said Wednesday. A witness “saw Burton wearing a Marine Corps uniform displaying the rank of lieutenant colonel, along with the Navy Cross, the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star[.] |
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Court-Martial Trial Practice Blog