Posted on 12/06/2009 3:16:46 PM PST by naturalman1975
A Remembrance Day conman who angered veterans by marching in a parade with an impossible array of medals was named and shamed today.
Roger Day strode alongside 600 genuine war heroes wearing a beige SAS beret and a dazzling selection of 21 military medals and badges.
Thousands of well-wishers - including the recently bereaved families of servicemen killed in Afghanistan - clapped and cheered as he marched past.
But organisers became suspicious when they noticed he had medals from campaigns including World War I and II, Korea, the Falklands, awards for both officers and privates and even a foreign medal.
His striking collection of medals even included the Distinguished Service Order and Military Cross.
No single servicemen could have been awarded all the medals, and they were wrongly displayed, said experts.
He was confronted by Jim Nicholson, who helped organise the march in Bedworth, Warks., on November 11 and admitted being a fake. He then promptly disappeared. When approached at his Leicestershire home, Day claimed he could not talk about his SAS service because of the Official Secrets Act.
He said: 'I can't comment on that, like I can't give you any real relevant details. I'm still tied under a lot of the Official Secrets Act.
'They're all proper, pukka campaign medals. Medals I won in conflicts while I was serving with the British forces. 'All I can say is South Atlantic the Gulf, Kuwait and one or two other stations.'
Today he again denied being a fraudster and threatened journalists with a four-letter tirade.
He said: 'If you don't get lost I will prove my military skills. I am not a liar. I was never confronted by anyone at the Bedworth parade.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
It almost takes a special sort of courage to walk among genuine veterans wearing that array of cutlery. You are just asking to get a punch in the nose.
I had no idea John Kerry had English relatives.
Me, for one. And I never received anything stronger than a Navy Commendation Medal in my 13 years.
I was awarded Good Conduct Medals (for not getting caught) I guess.
I have nothing but contempt for people who claim honors they have not earned.
Vile man.
He said: 'I can't comment on that, like I can't give you any real relevant details. I'm still tied under a lot of the Official Secrets Act.
Okay then... that's explains it... :-)
The pride that men who served four years, forty years ago, have in receiving that medal is a lesson to all that something you earned is worth something. Something you didn't is worth nothing.
Does the UK not have a similar law against misrepresenting one’s military background?
I think the term you’re looking for is “idiocy”. The medals are bad enough. I’m pretty sure that to real SAS guys, pretending to be from that unit when you’re not is equivalent to wearing a big sign that says “Please kick my ass.”
Wearing decorations to which one is not entitled is an offence in the UK under the Army Act of 1955. Three months imprisonment per count is the sentence, I believe.
The thing is - he’s pretending to be SAS and that makes it tricky. As a matter of policy the British government virtually never comments on the SAS, either to confirm nor deny anything. That policy would have to be broken to prosecute. If you go around saying “John Smith was never in the SAS” what do you do when a newspaper threatens to expose a real former SAS soldier whose identity needs to be protected.
Wearing both a Korean service and Vietnam service ribbon, with a look of early to mid 40’s about him?
Begging to be busted.
The guy is obviously a one man army. I say we should put a parachute on him and drop him into the SWAT valley.
Everyone wants to be a hero.
Even actual active duty service members are not immune to the temptation of adding some extra ribbons to their fruit salad.
The most common one I remember was the same thing that Adm. Boorda got called on, and which apparently prompted his suicide — adding Combat “V” devices to regular brownie point medals.
During my last hitch in the Navy a CPO got busted for that. It was his bad luck that he ran into a guy who remembered him from Nam and knew he was never any closer to the action than the local bars.
Chicken feed compared to what this story’s scumbag is doing, but still pretty lame.
WW1 thru to the Falklands.
Maybe he’s James Bigglesworth. Biggles had a long career.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biggles
I am a major, major Biggles fan - my collection is near complete at this point (I also had a near complete collection in 1971, but I gave it away to a younger boy as I thought I’d outgrown them!)
In many ways I’m torn when somebody who is or was in the service does it.
On the one hand - at least they served.
On the other - assuming their service was honourable, why do they feel the need to enhance it?
I can understand why it’s tempting, I think - I’ve got one decoration I don’t really believe I deserved (I’m not enough of an idealist to say no, but it was basically for doing my job efficiently and effectively and that’s what I was supposed to do) - and it must be galling to some people when that happens.
Wow, he has more medals than DITHF.
Be proud of your service! As the poet said,
“They also serve who only stand and wait.”
As for phony vets, throw the book at them! Be sure and read “Stolen Valor” c. 1998.
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