Kenneth EUGENE REEDaka Eugene Reed |
Army
- Served June 67- 04/09/1984 MOS 11B Records have been requested |
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The "clarification" that never made the
"online" editions: 
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Veterans network roots out fake heroes Sunday, July 19, 2009 4:03 AM THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH This past Memorial Day, a Vietnam veteran in London, Ohio, shared a harrowing story.
He told a newspaper reporter how, when he was an Army private in 1967, a North Vietnamese soldier climbed a tree, stuck a P-10 pistol into his ear and took him prisoner. How he survived for three months on dirty water and an ounce of rice a day. He said he escaped by breaking a guard's neck and shooting the others with the AK-47 he ripped from that dead soldier's hands. He claimed he ran barefoot through the jungle for 10 days to reach a Marine stronghold. He said he earned a Silver Star for his troubles..... |
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THE FAIRY TALE
http://www.madison-press.com/local.asp?ID=1678&Story=1 5/25/2009
Phony POW in Madison County, Ohio
May 25th, 2009
I got this article about twelve times in my inbox this morning and although it was meant for Uncle Jimbo, I figured I’d write a little something. The Madison Press‘ Sarah Thompson tries to write a touching tribute to veterans on Memorial Day, but she ends up getting scammed by a pretender named Eugene Reed; .... |
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quote: Two man LRRP team? Entered
Army in '67 and retired a MSG with 20 yrs. AD in '84? end quote |
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------------------------------------------ From:
Sarah Thompson [
mailto:news4@madison-press.com]
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Ms. Thompson,
Thank you for your article of May 25, 2009 "A Time to Pause and
Reflect". From 1977 to 1979 I was stationed at Great Lakes,
Navy Recruiting Area Five, recruiting for the Navy in the upper
Midwest. I found that my fellow Americans living in this area,
including Madison, were most patriotic and enthusiastic about
serving out country. Like you, I am awed by their dedication and
service.
There was one error in your article which degrades the quality of
the rest of the reportage. Kenneth Eugene Reed was NOT
a POW during the Vietnam War. His memory and accounts of his service
is not born out by official records. If you contact either of the
info addees to this email, they will point you in the right
direction to verify my statement.
Out of respect to Messrs Lindsey & Davis, to as well
as my fellow RPOWs I would respectfully request that your
newspaper identify Mr. Reed as a phony POW and publish that
fact as a correction in a follow-on edition of your paper.
Thank you for your professionalism and patriotism.
Respectfully,
Richard A. Stratton
POW NVN 1967-1973
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Will you please provide proof that he was a POW.
In fact, will you please provide a copy (.pdf copy is OK) of the
DD-214 that was provided to you. While a DD-214 will include a
record of honorable service (or a record of less than honorable
service), and the service medals to which the individual is
entitled, it does NOT confirm such experiences as were detailed in
your article.
Also, Sarah, the validity of his statements of combat experiences is
very highly questionable. The PMSEA Listing does NOT include
his name among those confirmed as POW's during the Vietnam War.
I and my colleagues would be most interested in any documented
evidence provided to you which would support Mr. Reed's claims.
“We had people walk up on us with grenades or kill you when they
shine your shoe.” you quoted Mr. Reed as stating. I know of
no combat rifleman who had his shoes shined.
“I was a prisoner of war for thee months,” is not supported by the official PMSEA records.
"Now, I speak fluently North and South Vietnamese."
I challenge you to hire a Vietnamese native living in Ohio to
converse with Mr. Reed. I am certain he will be proven not to
be so "fluent" as he professes.
‘You can either killroy (surrender) or I’ll blow your brains
out.’” Reed pantomimed raising his hands in the air,
laughing" - you quoted Mr. Reed. Hardly a laughing matter
any combat veteran would agree....and for your reference the
Vietnamese word for surrender is hardly Killroy but in fact "Sy
Dao Hang".
“The night we escaped, I heard them talking. They were going to kill us,” he said. Reed devised a plan. When the guards released him to relieve himself, Reed waited until the guard turned his back. Then, he sprang into action.“I grabbed him and broke his neck; grabbed his AK-47 and killed the rest of them. One of them got away,”Reed said. “We were on the run for 10 days through the jungle without our boots.”When they made their way to the Marine stronghold in Pleiku, Vietnam, Reed and his friend were nearly killed by their fellow Americans. There was some confusion because the two men were not wearing dog tags." was included in the article. Please be advised that K. Eugene Reed DOES NOT appear on the Department of Defense records as a POW Escapee either. “I had a top secret clearance for 14 years. I was not allowed to wear dog tags because if I got caught, I wasn’t there,” he said. - clearly another no such policy event. Many phonies hide behind the "sworn to secrecy/security clearance" line to fool uninformed civilians.
False claims to have been a POW are unforgivable trespasses upon
those honorable men who in fact were. I am advising you that K.
Eugene Reed's official military records will be obtained in
accordance with the Freedom of Information Act. I believe
those records will prove most interesting when compared to Mr.
Reed's stories relayed to you.
In the past many DD-214's have been forged and/or altered and
presented to those who may not be able to distinguish such from an
accurate and unaltered copy. I respectfully request that you
provide me a copy of the DD-214 Mr. Reed supplied you so that we may
compare it with the official records on file with the Department of
the Army. Also, please be advised that any false claims
of decorations/service medals may subject the individual to
investigation by the FBI for violation of The Stolen Valor Act.
With regards,
J
SSgt. USMC
Vietnam
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