Media Coverage OCTOBER 2009
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Oct. 30, 2009
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal
STOLEN VALOR ACT: Purple
Heart claim challenged
VA employee also accused
of taking $180,000 in benefits
By CARRI GEER THEVENOT and KEITH
ROGERS
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
A Veterans Affairs employee from Las Vegas was indicted
this week in a case of stolen valor and stolen benefits.....
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Romance Fraudster Steals Military Hero's Identity
SAN FRANCISCO
(CBS 5)
If you decide to try an online dating site, here's a question: How do
you know the person you're talking to, is real? And how would you feel
if the person you shared your private thoughts with turned out to be a
con man?.....
Tips to Avoid Internet Fraud from the REACT High Tech Crimes
Taskforce
http://www.reacttf.org/press_releases/2005_pr/20050811.htm
Internet fraud is more pervasive than ever. These frauds are easy for
criminals to perpetuate and very profitable. Often scammers will
perpetrate their fraud across a very wide geographical area, which often
makes the case impractical – at best – for law enforcement to
investigate. At worst, the case becomes impossible because the suspect
resides overseas or has successfully covered their online tracks.
While no set of tips or guidelines can completely insulate you from
becoming a victim of fraud, these simple tips will help protect you from
many of the common internet scams.
1. If the deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Whether it is
an online investment with a higher-than-average advertised rate of
return or steeply discounted merchandise, be wary of any deal that is
significantly better than the competition.....
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LANSING – Sen. Randy Richardville introduced legislation
Wednesday aimed at honoring veterans by establishing and increasing
current penalties for those who act dishonorably toward the men and
women who serve our country.
“Unfortunately, there have been cases in Michigan and across
the nation where veterans have not received the respect that they
deserve,” said Richardville, R-Monroe. “This legislation will
serve as a deterrent to anyone who tries to dishonor the service of
our nation’s brave soldiers.”....
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Phony War Hero Gets 18 Months Jail Time
October 22, 2009
Associated Press
QUANTICO, Va. -- .....Sgt. David W. Budwah also will be reduced in rank to private and
dishonorably discharged after any appeals. He must forfeit all pay and
benefits during his confinement and is subject to up to 3 1/2 years of
additional prison time if he re-offends within two years......
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".... MR Lyon: Feel free to "correct the story" if you
have proof (i.e. DD214, military records) of your claims. Until
such time that you provide proof, this publication is inclined to
believe the reputable sources which have researched your claims and
found them wanting."
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Prison inmate charged in 1987 killing of corpsman
The Associated Press
Posted: 10/15/2009 04:11:15 PM PDT
Updated: 10/15/2009 07:40:19 PM PDT
NATIONAL CITY, Calif.A 62-year-old man already serving a life sentence
for murder pleaded not guilty Thursday to the killing of a Navy corpsman
whose remains were discovered last year, 22 years after he went missing...... |
'Awards' Story a Shock to Sailors
October 17, 2009
Times Union, Albany, N.Y.
Joseph Keller was "gang busters" when he joined the Navy
reserves in 2006.....
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Here is an update on last month's story about James Richard Lyons,
the driver of the truck that carries the Wall That Heals from one
location to another.
James, as you may recall, has claimed to be a gunny in the Marines
who enlisted in the Navy and served 4 tours in Vietnam from 64 to 68
even though he was in high school in 66. Here, as Paul Harvey would
say is the rest of the story.
James Richard Lyons no longer works for the Vietnam Veterans
Memorial Fund.
After the story ran on VeterasToday.com "A
Fake Warrior and the Wall that Heals" James was relieved of
duty and Cary Dees replaced him.....
"Read More: "A
Fake Warrior and the Wall that Heals"
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From Australia:
More war impostors found
LORNA EDWARDS
October 12, 2009
Rex Crane. Photo: Jeremy Bannister/The Ballarat Courier
The Veterans Affairs Department is investigating another five
cases of war veteran fraud a few days after the head of a
prisoner-of-war association Rex Crane was revealed as a fake.......
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Weasel
Zippers: POS That Lied About Being A Decorated Iraq War ...
By ZIP
Richard Strandlof, who used the name Rick Duncan, is charged in
Colorado with violating the federal Stolen Valor Act. He was
taken to the federal lockup in San Diego and faces an extradition
hearing Tuesday. For more than a year, ...
Weasel
Zippers - http://www.weaselzippers.net/blog/
Senior
citizen is sought in string of bank holdups ...
Richard Glen Strandlof, 32, was wanted on a federal
warrant after he was charged with violating the Stolen Valor Act,
which makes it illegal to make false claims about having military
decorations. Strandlof is accused of falsely ...
SignOnSanDiego.com:
Metro - http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/metro/
The
Jawa Report: Dirtbag "Anti-War" Marine Imposter Arrested
By JaneNovak
Congress in 2005 passed the Stolen Valor Act after complaints
from veterans about phonies masquerading as heroes and tarnishing the
reputation of true heroes. Confronted by FBI agents, Strandlof
admitted that he had never served in the ...
The
Jawa Report - http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/
RFW
By News and Commentary
Under Colorado's Stolen Valor Act, it is illegal to make false
claims of having military decorations. Although the law doesn't apply
to Wisconsin (because state lawmakers are so backward and behind the
times ), Scocos ought to refrain ...
RFW
- http://radiofreewis.blogspot.com/
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Don’t you like that title? I do. Commence with the
bitching of my classification of this asshat after
you read the article. TSO is going back to doing the
superfly dance in his Superman jammies with the plastic footies….
SAN DIEGO - 9Wants to Know has learned the former head of
the Colorado Veteran’s Alliance, who admitted to lying about his
military service record, has been arrested by FBI agents in
California.
Rick Strandlof faces a charge of “false claims about receipt
of military decorations of medals.” ....
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POW chief a prisoner of
his own lies - Australia
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Phony
Marine due for arrest
Coloradan who posed as wounded Iraq veteran
being prosecuted under Stolen Valor Act
Updated: 10/03/2009 01:36:44 AM MDT
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Rick Glen Strandlof, a former mental patient
who posed as a wounded Marine captain to found a
statewide veterans group and campaign for
political candidates, is being prosecuted under
the Stolen Valor Act for making claims he
received a Purple Heart......
Nancy Lofholm: 970-256-1957 or nlofholm@denverpost.com
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Memorial caretaker faces Stolen Valor charges
Marine Corps Times
By Dan
Lamothe - Staff writer
Posted : Friday Oct 2, 2009 13:36:10 EDT
Three years ago, Katie Valentino visited the California Vietnam
Veterans Memorial, a granite and bronze monument in Sacramento dedicated
to the 5,822 service members from the Golden State who died or
disappeared during the war.
After shooting some photographs, she was stopped by Kenneth Nelson,
who introduced himself as a retired gunnery sergeant and Vietnam
veteran. He spent the next 45 minutes telling her stories about the war,
she said, including how his own commanding officer died in his hands.
“You never forget seeing death,” she called him telling her......
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Speaker's POW status is in doubt
Great Bend man stands by his war story, although records do not support
it
Former Vietnam-era prisoners of war and related organizations
contend that a Great Bend man falsely claimed to have been a POW during
a POW/MIA commemoration on Sept. 19 in Great Bend.
The man, John Patrick Murphy, wore a Marine uniform with sergeant's
stripes and was identified as having spent a year as a prisoner of war
in Laos.
At one point he told the gathering: "As prisoners we endured
unimaginable physical and mental torture at the hands of our
captors."
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Authorities: Activist claimed false medals
Marine Corps Times
By Dan
Lamothe - Staff writer
Posted : Friday Oct 2, 2009 17:32:02 EDT
U.S. authorities have charged an admitted military faker exposed by
Colorado veterans this spring for lying about being a Marine captain who
served three tours in Iraq, was wounded in combat and survived the 9/11
terror attack on the Pentagon.
Richard Strandlof, 32, was charged Thursday with violating the
federal Stolen Valor Act, which prohibits claiming military decorations
that have not been earned. Using the alias Rick Duncan, Strandlof became
an activist, founding the Colorado Veterans Alliance and campaigning for
anti-war political candidates under the premise. He told other veterans
that he was a Purple Heart and Silver Star recipient wounded by an
improvised explosive device in 2004 in Fallujah, Iraq, authorities said
in an affidavit filed in U.S. District Court in Denver......
More online
The
complaint
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Alleged
Veteran Impersonator Charged With Faking Military Medals
KKTV
11 News
Alleged Veteran Impersonator Charged With Faking Military Medals
11 News just learned that the man accused of pretending to be a
wounded veteran is now facing federal charges.
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Phony Soldier Arrested After Alleged Bad Check
Scam
Posted: 4:18 pm EDT October 2, 2009Updated:
5:28 pm EDT October 2, 2009
Every month Willys Rosario loads up his SUV in Monroe and takes his
high-end remote-controlled cars to sell at flea markets.
In August he was here at the Barnyard Flea Market in York County
when a man came up with a woman and a young boy wanting to buy two
cars for $380.
"The one he purchased had a red body on it," Willys
said. ....
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Charges filed against phony Colorado war hero
Marine Corps Times
By Dan
Lamothe - Staff writer
Posted : Friday Oct 2, 2009 13:31:42 EDT
U.S. authorities have charged an admitted military faker exposed by
Colorado veterans this spring for lying about being a Marine captain who
served three tours in Iraq, being wounded in combat and surviving the
9/11 terrorist attack on the Pentagon.
Jeffrey Dorschner, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in
Colorado, confirmed Friday morning that charges had been filed against
Richard Glen Strandlof, 32, but said he did not immediately know what
they were. The actions come nearly five months after the FBI arrested
him May 13 on an outstanding warrant after questioning him about his
purported past, which he later admitted concocting.....
Related reading
Marine
faker admits deception in TV interview
Accused
marine faker pleads in traffic case
Vet
advocate accused of being Marine faker
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Still no charges for accused Colo. faker
Marine Corps Times
By Dan
Lamothe - Staff writer
Posted : Thursday Oct 1, 2009 19:38:58 EDT
It was a case of military fraud so complete it led a statewide
veterans organization to disband.
Richard Glen Strandlof, 32, was arrested May 13 in Colorado on an
outstanding warrant after the FBI questioned him about his purported
past as a Marine captain, three-time Iraq war veteran, wounded warrior
and survivor of the 9/11 terror attack on the Pentagon.
It was all a lie, he
later admitted in a nationally televised interview on CNN. ...
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Pomona-area
water board member sentenced for misusing public funds
October 1, 2009 | 2:09 pm
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2009/10/pomona-water-board.html
A Pomona-area water board member convicted of misappropriating public
funds was sentenced today to five years in state prison.
Pomona Superior Court Judge Mike Camacho sentenced Three Valleys
Municipal Water District board member Xavier
Alvarez, 51, to state prison and ordered him to pay
$4,150.79 in restitution to the water district....
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