INTRODUCTION

CLAIMING VIETNAM PRISONER OF WAR:

V V A - Claims by members of  Vietnam Veterans of America

==================================
More Reported Claims:
Medal of Honor, Other than Vietnam POWs, Son Tay Raiders, DSC, DFC, Purple Heart, Silver Star, Bronze Star, Navy Cross, SEALS, Rangers, Pilots, Special Forces, Green Berets, Combat, Vietnam Helicopter Pilots, Flying Tigers, DOUBT EVERYTHING, Don't Encourage 

APOLOGIES AND CLARIFICATIONS

Heroes or Villains?

Individuals reported as of  03/2008
CLAIMING VIETNAM POW STATUS  or as noted
#  =  on list over 11 years

All claims highlighted in lavender are eligible for prosecution under the  STOLEN VALOR ACT signed into law Dec 20, 2006.

Note: These individuals are IN ADDITION TO those investigated and named in the book STOLEN VALOR.

Those with a "LINK" have records, news articles, pictures or tales posted
Comments in GREEN are from information contained in military records (or lack of military records) obtained through FOIA when requested THROUGH the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis.

R

Name                                     Location Date Reported ALL Claim POW or MIA and then some Actual Records Indicate/Notes
Rader, Coleman . 2001 Claims POW .
Rahn, Dennis R. . 07/2007 Claims Vietnam POW Actual records
Randazzo, James . . Claims POW .
Rapp, Karl . 10/2007 Claims former POW of the Vietnam era, a retired US Marine aviator, Colonel Karl Rapp.  Rapp claims he was not known by POWs held in Vietnam because he (Rapp) was shot down over China and held there for four years.  Further, Rapp said he didn't  want to talk about his experience because it was due to his being somewhere he should not have been. .
Rash, Donald . 05/02 Claims Army, POW and "on the WALL" NOT to be confused with USMC KIA Donald Ray Rash. 

Rasmussen, Robert, USA RET

East Coast

Multiple Sources

1997

  Still repeating tales in 2000 and 2001

11/2006

POW/ Special Forces, Special Ops.  12 to 17 (indicated with STARS!!, not Oak Leaf Clusters) Silver Stars in his shadow box  ("given out like candy at the end of every mission")  3 Dist Service Crosses. Keeps complaining about "due" retirement pay. Claims Second Special Forces graduation Class. Graduate of Ranger School. Put in for Medal of Honor 2x, settled for 2 DSC. Has Class A's - E-9 rank. Not to be confused with retired Navy Captain Bob Rasmussen

Public historical references do not list Rasmussen as a DSC recipient nor POW.

11/2006

Rasmussen, Robert, USA RET
 
This may be the same Bob Rasmussen (spelling is the same) that I knew in Hawaii in 1998-1999. I lived in Irquois Point Navy housing and he lived a few houses away. He claimed to be a retired Green Beret. His story went that he was an orphan, parents died in some horrible way, he grew up in several orphanages, at first opportunity he joined the Army. Due to his austere childhood he was "hand-picked" to enter Airborne, Ranger, and Green Beret Training. Eventually did several tour in Vietnam, lots of hand-to-hand combat, etc. Myself being in the Navy he was able to name drop a lot of people that I knew and made his story almost plausible.
  Went to his house a few times. He had the typical CO's set up in a bedroom. Large wooden desk with the flags behind it, big inert mortar rounds around the desk, lots of pictures of him in his Alphas at various military functions posing with other E-9's, and 8's and the obligatory racks of ribbons and pins. No pictures from being in country.
  Strangest thing was that he had a "verified to be true" copy of his service record smack in the middle of this desk. Contained within were his page 4's showing all these schools he had been to in addition to an entry stating that he had graduated from BUD's training because he was going to be stationed there as a PEP billet instructor, early 80's I believe. He even had a Budwieser on the desk with some story about being number one in his class and at graduation the CO "removed his own pin and pinned me".
  Anyway, to make a long story short, he was "retired" and married a gal who had just finished college. He "made her" do four years as an enlisted person so she "would know what its like" before he "allowed her" to get her commission and enter the Intel Community. So one night he tells me that he may be into something that could draw attention to him. Of course he won't go into the details because he doesn't want me getting involved. He's watching out for me, right?
  A few days later I get a phone call at work from my wife who says that this "SWAT" looking team has surrounded his house (on base no less) and has him coming out the front door with his hands on top of his head.
  About a week later I'm mowing my lawn and his LT wife comes home. She proceeds to tell me that her "husband" is in no way shape or form who she thought he was, it wasn't even his real name, he was never in the military, etc., and he is incarcerated in a Federal Penn in Arizona.
  Never saw him again, we wound up PCS'ing out of Hawaii so I never got the real story on this guy. The picture definitely bears a resemblance to him. About 6 foot one or two, a little under 300 pounds, very articulate in military jargon but every now and then he'd say something that would just make you wonder, like everyone who has ever been through bootcamp in any service would not make that mistake. Big guy, big picture that he painted, big lie that he was living.....
Ray, Herbert . 1998 Claims POW .
Ray, Wallace (Ricky Ray) Silver Creek, NE 1998 Claims POW .
Reale, Christopher B. .   01/01 Hanoi Hilton, met Jane, beaten for giving Jane SS#, "spit in her face"....1st CAV 8th DIV Air Assault 
<< SgtReam@aircav.com>>
.
Redigan, John P. Daytona Beach FL 02/2006 Originally appeared on News-Journal Online at
http://www.news-journalonline.com/NewsJournalOnline/News/Headlines/frtHEA
D03021106.htm
[click on the above link or email us for the entire article.]

February 11, 2006

Agency director resigns amid questions


DAYTONA BEACH -- The new director of an agency serving the disabled resigned Friday after questions were raised about his claims of being a military fighter pilot and a pro-football coach.

John Redigan, 59, head of the Association for Retarded Citizens of Volusia, resigned after meeting Friday with executive board members.

The board met with Redigan after a Daytona Beach News-Journal article Friday raised doubts about the validity of him being a Thunderbird pilot, a commander of a fighter wing, a prisoner of war and a Jacksonville Jaguars coach.

Redigan, who served on the ARC board for five years, made the comments in an interview earlier this week, as well as to civic groups and people in the community.

But U.S. Air Force officials stated he was not a commander or Thunderbird pilot. A Jaguars spokeswoman said he was not a volunteer coach. And POW sites did not list his name......

......  When confronted with the discrepancies late Thursday, Redigan continued to insist he had been a Thunderbird, a POW and volunteer running-back coach for the Jaguars. He later said his resume should not have stated he was commander over a tactical fighter wing of 22 F-15s, but instead a chief in the inspection unit......

.
Reed, John E. . 1998 Claims POW .
Reed, Richard Deane
aka BGen Richard Deane Reed Jr USA Ret
Birmingham, Alabama 1999
04/02
Claims SF/Delta Force, SONTAY Raider, 60 day Cambodian POW, general officer. Claims 23 years and/or 36 years military service. Claims took SEAL training as SF liaison. Private/E1 Operating Rm Sp 91D20, TX, AL, Europe then AWOL when in CA. NO Vietnam. Served from Sept 66 to Sept 72. DoB September 12, 1947. In 1964 had 32 hours of VETERINARY MEDICINE from St. Petersburg Jr. College.
Reedy, Glenn Maurice . . POW/SF/CIA .
Reiss, Brian Seattle 04/2003
Claims Vietnam POW,  MIA six times, and shot down three times. 
Seen on KING TV News in Seattle
Rem, Henry . 1998 Claims POW .
Rendon,  Alfonso Joseph . . Claims POW .
Ress, Norman "Ed" San Antonio, TX . claims with McCain, Maj General! .
Rester, David TN 2001 Claims POW .
Revis, Harley D. . . Claims POW .
Reyes, Frank West Covina, CA 01/2006

11/2006

again
11/2006

yet again 09/2007

He claims he was captured twice and did spend time in the Hilton. Second time he claims he was captured in Quang Tri working with MACV SOG in 1975.

"Read the Frank Reyes story, "The Ambush" on military.com. ... there were no rice paddies or villages on that road. John Zager was hit once while taking cover under the jeep. He was hit with a single round to the head with a 51cal."

 

From Rebromeo on Sat Apr 03 15:41:52 1999: :
Being a fomer p.o.w. in Vietnam for a few years gives me the right to say that these three young men have earned the right to be labeled Heroes.Look to the future when they return home to what is a well desevered welcome home party.From,Sgt Frank Reyes 14th A detach.5th. Special Forces
 
Its a cached page..
http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:F7l0EEpqh9kJ:cityguide.aol.com/losangeles/
ladailynews/main.dci%3Fpage%3Dlayug41+Rebromeo+%40aol.com&hl=en&
gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=7

===============================
09/2007

I have spent countless hours reading the ”phonies” that were exposed as frauds on your website—it is an awesome site and a great source. I looked up Frank Reyes’ information AOL and this is the information he provides under his profile for his screen name, “Rebromeo.” You check for yourself by entering the screen name I provided in the AOL “Get Member Profile” section under the “Community” option on the toolbar.

Name  Frank R. Reyes SSG. Ret.

Location  SO. CAL

Gender  Male

Marital Status  Married

Hobbies & Interests  Wood working,Reading.Traveling,

Favorite Gadgets  Pac. Bell

Occupation
Retired, Military 10 Years, 75th Rangers , 5th & 10th Special Forces

After all you guys have done to expose this idiot, he is still lying about his service.

Note: I am a retired police sergeant from the State of New Jersey and I spent an entire career exposing liars and frauds. I would also like to thank all of the real heroes and veterans who have served this great country of ours—thank you for everything!

name with held

 

 

Records, photo and MORE

Yet MORE:   http://want2be.info/listingview.php?listingID=33

Reynolds, Paul Leroy . 08/01 Claims POW .
Rheinhardt,  Max A Jr. WA 10/02

12/2003

Claims captured in Cambodia while with Washington State Air National Guard.
Works for the Washington State Department of Corrections in Shelton, WA where he is a Interstate Extradition Lieutenant. Also claims to have played football for the University of Texas, graduated from Centralia community college and St Martins College in Lacey WA. He has portrayed himself as an undercover FBI agent. Claims to have been hit in the face repeatedly with rifle but while in captivity and sustained a severely fractured jaw this is why he must have all his teeth pulled and fitted with special dentures.

In the November 03 issue of a news letter called the Dolphin which is for the Shelter Bay Yacht Club in LaConner Washington Rheinhardt now states that he is a retired Law Enforcement Officer and Air Force Pilot. He retired as a Correctional Lt. They are not Law Enforcement. See next column re: pilot!

NOT A POW.

Never left Washington  State. A1C. Served in Guard from 08/10/66 till 02/23/73. Medals - Small Arms expert ribbon and Armed Forces Reserve Medal. END OF RECORD. 

aka Rhodes, Jack "Dusty"

aka Nash, John (Jack)
aka John F. Nash
aka JackSlim42
aka CWO40873

real name:
Mckean, Lionel Tucker

Richmond, Charlottesville,
Greenwood, Campbell County,  VA

Lancaster PA

12/2002


click here for the REST OF THE STORY
on
  LIONEL TUCKER  MCKEAN

 
Rice, Sydney . . Claims POW .
Richards, Col Arthur Allen
aka Sisson, Roger E.F.
aka O'Shanahan, Patrick
Brevard County, FL 1999 USMC - 7 yrs POW .
Richards, Cliff Lander, WY 03/19/2003 Claims POW/gunner - "I was saturated with his blood when I was taken prisoner, I still had those bloody clothes on when I was liberated."...this is why I'm against a war that I don't think has to be fought."
Casper STAR TRIBUNE, letters to the Editor, March 19, 2003
.
Richards, Jim   07/2005
Claims POW, secret missions. Claims film producer: "IN HONOR OF"
.
Richardson, Gary MO 03/2006
Claimed Army Special Forces and had been held by the VC. 
.
Riker, Richard A.
aka J.M. Alberti
. 1998 Claims POW .
Roberts, Chuck
aka Roberts Charles Noward
 MI - PRISON
TN
2nd report
04/02
SF Officer, POW
POW license tags MI 14A77
VVA 
Roberts, David A.
Charlotte, NC  Chuckey, TN 
11/2006 Claims USMC, flew off of ships to fight and that his plane was shot down. He was captured and held as a POW. .
Rodarmel, Ray   follow the yellow brick road.....

Commerce City, Colorado

Bronaugh MO

07/2005 He claims to have been held f as a POW for six months, and said he was transported North  to Hanoi after capture in the south. 

http://laramieboomerang.com/news/archivemore.asp?StoryID=103626
News Story Published On 7/7/2005

Bringing the carnival to town

By Micah Sturr
Boomerang Staff Writer

Most men bring their razor from home when they travel for business. Ray Rodarmel leaves his razor, and brings his home.

Rodarmel, a Vietnam veteran, Purple Heart winner and former prisoner of war, works for Brown’s Amusement and is in Laramie setting up and working the Jubilee Days carnival near the Laramie Railroad Depot. He is part of a changing generation of carnival workers.

Brown’s Amusement general manager Chuck Myrick has been in the carnival business for 30 years......
Rodarmel was unshaven on Tuesday during set up. Employees must be shaven and have neatly cropped hair by policy. The retired United States Marine, father of six, grandfather of 16 and great-grandfather of five, doesn’t have a beef with the policy; he just didn’t have his home. The bunks and Rodarmel’s home still hadn’t arrived from Riverton....

http://www.laramieboomerang.com/news/more.asp?StoryID=103714
07/24/2005

Proud to be a veteran

By Micah Sturr
Boomerang Staff Writer

People lie. People are even willing to tell unconscionable lies for little reason.

Lying about being a Vietnam veteran, or even uglier, about being a prisoner of war, is uncomfortably common. There are significantly more men who are actively lying about being POWs than there were men who actually were POWs in North Vietnam.

There were 661 military POWs who returned home from the Vietnam War, according to former POW Capt. Mike McGrath (Ret.), and the federal government. One such man lied to the Boomerang, and this reporter specifically, about his service several weeks ago.

Lying about service is an easy way to add prestige to an otherwise mediocre existence, and relatively easy to get away with in a barroom or with someone who hasn’t served in the military.

“I’m more disappointed. I’m not hurt. I understand that there are people out there who have such low self esteems that we call them wannabes, because they want to be SEALs, they want to be special forces, they want to be POWs, they want to be doctors or senators or congressmen,” McGrath, who was held in the infamous “Hanoi Hilton” for five years after his Navy A4C was shot down, said.

Several Laramie veterans shared McGrath’s disappointment. They also showed pity, anger, contempt and resignation about the sad proliferation of phonies.

“I used to get really angry; it used to really upset me, but now I’m getting inured to it, and I just think, ‘here’s another one,’” Veterans Representative for the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services Ron Franck said.

Franck earned his Purple Hearts over multiple tours as a Marine in Vietnam, just as Jay Larsen served as a clerk and driver for the Army in Vietnam from 1970 to 1971. It was Larsen who spotted the false claim made by Ray Rodarmel in the Boomerang and immediately put the wheels in motion to expose Rodarmel as a fraud.

“Frauds have no business taking something away from these guys. These guys had to deal with so much crap, and to have somebody take that away from them like that,” Larsen said as he snapped his fingers, “it’s not right.”

Phony POWs are easy to ferret out thanks to the Internet. Web sites like www.pownetwork.org have complied lists of authentic POWs as well as pretenders. With as little as a full name and address, service records can be researched with freedom of information act requests, and true military service revealed.

“It’s all very easy because the government has a complete list of everybody who was missing in action. It’s very easy to confirm or deny, and not one person of the over 1,200 (listed on www.pownetwork.org’s list of frauds) has found that list to be in error,” McGrath said.

Larsen said that he smelled something fishy with Rodarmel’s boasts and ran his name through several databases before he even finished reading the story.

“I don’t think that these guys who are doing this are aware of how much information is on the computer and in these databases,” Larsen said.... (clipped)

Rodriguez, Jose . 1998 Claims POW .
Rodriguez, Paul Bel Air Beach, FL 05/2007 Claims USAF F4 pilot claiming to be POW with two tours. .
Rodriguez, Dr. Rosendo  AZ 05/2006
Students hear how shooting victim rebuilt his life
 
By Carmen Duarte
ARIZONA DAILY STAR - Tucson, Arizona | Published: 04.20.2006
 
"....He dealt with these emotions for months and he used inner strength — the same strength that helped him survive torture and starvation as a prisoner in Vietnam in 1965. He was 24 when he and 21 fellow Marines were captured in the jungles of Phubai, south of the city of Hue.
Like other soldiers, Rodriguez was crammed into a bamboo cage that was lowered underground. He survived by eating rice and insects before he was rescued...."
-----
   
".....Later in life, Rodriguez entered into the service of his country. Rodriguez is a USMC Vietnam vet who spent quite a bit of his time in-country as a POW. As a POW, he was beaten and tortured regularly. He shared with the kids that during intense periods of "attempted subversion," as he put it, at the hands of his torturers he would focus on one of his favorite foods at  McDonalds to get himself through it. Of his experiences in 'Nam, Rodriguez said he learned that the mind can overcome even what the body is unwilling to......"
After Vietnam, he worked as a racecar technician, a small business owner, a law student, and a long-distance walker. This gentleman walked across the entirety of the United States, east to west. He ended his trip when he reached the Pacific and dumped a quart of water from the Atlantic, which he carried on his back the whole way, into the ocean. Did I mention that he was completely blind?
.
Rogala, Richard . . Claims POW .
Roger, Hugh . 1998 Claims POW .
Rogers, David Kramer Culver City, CA 08/2005 Claims to have been a helicopter pilot during the Vietnam War and a prisoner at The Hanoi Hilton.  .
Romero, Aristeo R. TX . Claims POW .
Roming, Derek . 04/02 Claims USMC, POW, Purple Heart. Initial investigation suggests USMC, E4, AircPraft Maint Admin  CLERK
Romanazzi, Lorenzo . 03/2003 Claims held Hanoi Hilton with John McCain...2 yrs, 4.5 yrs - depends on tale. Claims Special ops, pilot, Stealth and helicopter. Reserves, activated for Afghanistan; served in 5 wars. Claims millionaire, owns private plane, Gulf Stream; best friend is CNN's Judge Katherine Crier's ex-husb - Crier's "son" is cadet at USAFA according to Bryant. Owns "EXTREME" [some type of aerospace firm] ... refurbishes aircrafts. Held POW with flyboy Jon Later Bryant.  
Ronneburg, Erik . . Claims POW .
Roper, Gregory CA # Claims POW .
Rosen, Larry . 1998 Claims POW .
Rothwell, Tom . 09/2003
Claims POW, shot in the knee escaping a prison camp in Cambodia? Claims held in a cage in water for 9 months,  killing a guard and escaping with 3 other Americans prisoners. Claims he was the only one who escaped/is still alive today. He claims everyone committed suicide because of the horrors in captivity.
.
ROULETT, LARRY NEW MEXICO 03/2008 CLAIMS Navy and USAF, 1964 F4C shootdown. Held in Laos 6 months, rescued by Koreans. Have New Mexico Veteran License plates. .
Rowe, Russell K
aka Kiser, Russell Linn
Nevada 2001

06/2003

http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2001/Mar-20-Tue-2001/news/15683658.html

....   said Kiser was serving in the Navy as a radio technician on the USS Navaro in 1965. During a trip into Vietnam, Buchanan said Kiser was approached by an unidentified Marine captain who recruited him to go on a covert government mission into the depths of Vietnam and Cambodia.    Kiser was captured and imprisoned by the Khmer Rouge at a Cambodian labor camp, where Captain Kai mercilessly tortured Kiser and his colleagues, Buchanan said. Captain Kai would stick his finger into the bullet wound of another soldier and twist it around, repeatedly saying "You want to kill me Yankee, don't you?" he said.    "At that time in his mind, that is when the horror begins," Buchanan said of his client.    Buchanan said Kiser escaped and finished his tour of duty. During the next three decades Kiser repeatedly applied for disability from the U.S. government because of his torture but was rejected.    It wasn't until after Kiser shot Feeley, Buchanan said, that a psychologist with the Department of Veterans Affairs determined that Kiser suffers from the stress disorder, making him eligible for disability. ....    Pesci said Kiser and his attorney could not produce a document known as a DD214, which details a military man's service record.   "There is no documentation of this at all," Pesci said. 

Ruel, Dan Louisiana 02/2005 Claims retired as USAF Brig General and states that he was at Hanoi Hilton as a POW from 1969 through 1973, flew F-15s and states he was "3 cells down from McCain".  
Ruggles, Ralph D. Tucson, AZ 1998
2nd report 04/2002
POW and assassin for CIA Has POW or POW/MIA license plates
Rundlett, George W.
aka "Buzz"
Upton, New York area 06/2003
07/2005
  • Claims Helicopter Pilot (true)
  • Sarajevo "stuff"
  • POW - held "only a short period of time"
  • Claims National Guard!
  • Had to eat grass in captivity  - now very overweight from fear of "starving"
  • 101st Airborne
WO1
Ft. Rucker flight class: 66-3
Wings date: 04/26/66
Rundlett was a jr. high school teacher in the 70's - Fifth Street Jr. high in Bangor Maine.  He did do some time in Thomaston Prison in Maine.
 
He has found Jesus and is actually preaching at a Congregationalist church!!!  Is working for a DOE United States Research facility - BNL.
Runyon, Clyde Joseph Independence, MO 07/2007 Claiming USMC first, then helicopter pilot, Air America, POW

Claims he was captured - crew chief injured. The crew chief begged for mercy not to be a POW  - so Runyon shot him in the head. All else on board dead.

Runyon captured and tortured by women and children. Held in cage. Found a nail, escaped - but only after killing "all" the women and children.
DID serve in Vietnam, USMC enlisted.
Ruskin, Ed St. Clairesville, OH 01/99 Featured/Pictured Ohio VFW News - December 1998.  .
Russbacher, Gunther . 02/2000 POW, SEAL, held 18 months Laos. Naval officer attached CIA .
Rutherford, Claude James TN # Claims POW .
Rutherford, Donald L. Forsyth, MO 04/02 Claims "detainee" for 12 hours before two of them rescued. Cannot recall events. Just had "hard time." 196th LIB, 68-69. Claims wounded, gets VA care and PTSD treatment. VFW member. He says his records do not note his capture, detention, rescue.....   

Next Page

 

INTRODUCTION

CLAIMING VIETNAM PRISONER OF WAR:

V V A - Claims by members of  Vietnam Veterans of America

==================================
More Reported Claims:
Medal of Honor, Other than Vietnam POWs, Son Tay Raiders, DSC, DFC, Purple Heart, Silver Star, Bronze Star, Navy Cross, SEALS, Rangers, Pilots, Special Forces, Green Berets, Combat, Vietnam Helicopter Pilots, Flying Tigers, DOUBT EVERYTHING, Don't Encourage 

APOLOGIES AND CLARIFICATIONS

RE: ANY NAME ON THIS PAGE:  If anyone has viable proof of their captivity [or claims] which is accepted by the American Ax-POWs, NAM-POWs, DoD  and DMPO - PLEASE contact us immediately. We will take corrective action and work with them to be recognized for their sacrifice.


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