# Fake Military Veteran



## comiso90 (Jun 11, 2009)

video: Video - Breaking News Videos from CNN.com

Fake military veteran hid under 'ocean of lies' - CNN.com

(CNN) -- Richard Strandlof said he survived the 9/11 attacks on the Pentagon. He said he survived again when a roadside bomb went off in Iraq killing four fellow Marines. He'd point to his head and tell people he had a metal plate, collateral damage from the explosion.
Richard Strandlof says he didn't mean to cause harm when he lied about being a military veteran.

Richard Strandlof says he didn't mean to cause harm when he lied about being a military veteran.

Crowds ate up his story. He canvassed Colorado appearing at the sides of politicians. Inspiring and seemingly authentic, he spoke on behalf of veterans at the state Capitol.

It turns out the whole thing was a lie. He wasn't at the Pentagon. He was never a Marine. He never served his country. He never graduated from the Naval Academy. He claimed his name was Rick Duncan.

He formed a group called the Colorado Veterans Alliance, and the FBI is now investigating whether he embezzled money as a result. Video Watch Strandlof defend himself »

Where was he on 9/11, the day he said he witnessed heroism firsthand?

"I was in San Jose, California, watching it in horror on TV with a few other people," Strandlof told CNN's Anderson Cooper.

He was at a homeless shelter at the time.

Strandlof denies being a pathological liar. He says he suffered from "some severely underdiagnosed mental illness" and that he got caught up in the moment around "people who are passionate and loved what they did."

He told CNN he had put on a "production, which I'm sorry for."

"Hopefully the people that I hurt can in some way gain closure from that, and I myself don't know what I can do short of leaving them alone and not being in their lives, to make that happen," Strandlof said.

He said he's not sure exactly how he's hurt people. "It's not for me to say, and time will tell," he said.
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Hal Bidlack, a former Air Force lieutenant colonel, is one of those people. He ran for Congress as a Democrat and had Strandlof appear with him. Bidlack isn't too happy.

"Once one lie fell apart, the whole series of things ... just cascaded into an ocean of lies," he said.

Bidlack was at the Pentagon when it came under attack on September 11, 2001. He now realizes that Strandlof stole portions of his own story.

"Now that we know he's a lying fraud," Bidlack said, "I think he was just parroting my own story back to me."

"There are an awful lot of things that he kept straight to try to fool an awful lot of people for an awful long time."

Doug Sterner has catalogued hundreds of people claiming to be military veterans who never served in the military. He says it's typical for those perpetuating the hoaxes to claim mental illness.

"I don't buy that," Sterner said. "What he was doing was looking for a cause to promote himself. I see this repeatedly. I've had a hundred cases just this year like Rick Strandlof's. ... What they're doing is building a kingdom of self and feeding their own ego."

Sterner has pushed for a federal database listing the names and citations of all decorated military veterans to help put an end to such cases. He said Strandlof has robbed true veterans of their veracity.

"Doing good does not take away from the bad that he did," he said. "Because of Rick Strandlof, the next global war on terrorism veteran that speaks in a school or talks to the media or gets involved in politics is going to be questioned."

Strandlof's story began to unravel about a month ago when he was arrested in Colorado Springs on a minor traffic charge. According to the Denver Post, Strandlof came to authorities' attention first in 1997, when he was sentenced to five years on forgery and bad-check charges.
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With the FBI now investigating him for fraud, he told CNN he's innocent. "We did not take money to use on non-veterans projects. I did not enrich myself on this. I did not gain any money from this," he said.

That's not the point, said Sterner. "The one thing he robbed from every veteran that comes out now is credibility."


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## Njaco (Jun 11, 2009)

I frikkin hate idiots like this.


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## vikingBerserker (Jun 11, 2009)

Not cool, not cool at all.


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## evangilder (Jun 11, 2009)

Disgraceful. Disgusting. Dishonorable. What a senseless waste of human life.


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## GrauGeist (Jun 11, 2009)

> said Sterner. "The one thing he robbed from every veteran that comes out now is credibility."


I don't agree with that statement at all...

I don't question a veteran's credibility...they did what they did, and if in the long run, it turns out to be otherwise, then I'd deal with that particular instance. Strandlof and his kind are few and far in between, fortunately.

Sterner's statement is akin to "all are guilty until proven innocent" and that way of thinking is just about as bad as what Strandlof did.


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## comiso90 (Jun 11, 2009)

I think he should be sent to Iraq to dig some graves...


.


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## Von Frag (Jun 12, 2009)

Anyone ever read Stolen Valor by Burkett?


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## comiso90 (Jun 12, 2009)

and spend time with the children of the fallen.

,


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## wheelsup_cavu (Jun 12, 2009)

If they can send 60 year old men to Iraq he can be trained and sent there too.
It's better than just sending him to prison.



Wheelsup


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## Vassili Zaitzev (Jun 12, 2009)

What a ing act, he seems to be the bottom of the gene pool.


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## lesofprimus (Jun 12, 2009)

What a fu*kin douchebag....


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## Gnomey (Jun 12, 2009)

F*cking grade A scumbag right there. Disgraceful to impersonate people who have given so much to their country just so you can make a quick buck and gain some recognition.


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## evangilder (Jun 12, 2009)

Reminds me of a local "war hero" named Roland SPerry. He wrote a book about being in the Flying Tigers, was in all the papers, etc. He lied about it all. I found his book in my box of crap the other day and promptly put it in the recycle bin. Hopefully, it will be recycled into something useful, like a barf bag...


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## Colin1 (Jun 12, 2009)

Comiso! You stole my thread!
Thread-rustling's a hanging offence in these here parts...


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## Wayne Little (Jun 12, 2009)

Son of a b!tch...


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## comiso90 (Jun 12, 2009)

Colin1 said:


> Comiso! You stole my thread!
> Thread-rustling's a hanging offence in these here parts...



did u post it too?

sorry.... It's all in the Headline


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## Colin1 (Jun 12, 2009)

comiso90 said:


> did u post it too?


I posted it (and the title) in Off Topic
Sitrep is for _military_ current affairs and I didn't think he merited a mention in here

It said 'Moved' and when you click on it, it comes here


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## Gnomey (Jun 12, 2009)

Yeah I merged the two threads and put it in here (and deleted your post Colin because it was a duplicate of Comiso's which was 3 mins before yours ). Whilst I agree he doesn't merit a mention here, I feel it fits here better than elsewhere, as it is a military matter even though it is impersonation and he wasn't actually in the military. Can easily be move if everyone agrees it would be better back in Off Topic or Modern.


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## Colin1 (Jun 12, 2009)

Gnomey said:


> ...deleted your post Colin because it was a duplicate of Comiso's which was 3 mins before yours ).
> Can easily be move if everyone agrees it would be better back in Off Topic or Modern.


Pipped at the post by Comiso 

No problem with where it's at Gnomey, that was my personal feeling overruling the logical pigeon-hole for the thread


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## RabidAlien (Jun 12, 2009)

The guy's a douchebag for sure. I wouldn't waste another taxpayer's dollar on him by sending him to court....ship him overseas to dig foxholes and graves for the REAL men and women he was impersonating. Make him eat what they eat, live how they live, endure what they endure...all for an average Iraqi paycheck (what's the goin rate these days...a couple bucks a week?). Teach him to show a bit of respect and REALLY give back to the community at the same time.


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## Soundbreaker Welch? (Jun 12, 2009)

I'm glad they found out the truth of the matter. Maybe he should go to Iraq, see what war is all about.


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## ToughOmbre (Jun 12, 2009)

*What a jerk!*



TO


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## Lucky13 (Jun 13, 2009)

What a fanny and bawsack!


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## ccheese (Jun 13, 2009)

lesofprimus said:


> What a fu*kin douchebag....



Dan.... You're too kind ! I realize you have to curtail your resentment to this ba$tard, and I know where
you're coming from. An effin douchbag just doesn't say quite enough.

Charles


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## Ferdinand Foch (Jun 14, 2009)

Son of a [email protected]@@@!  I wouldn't spending ten minutes alone with this [email protected]@@!


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## Sweb (Jun 14, 2009)

This is a repulsive individual to me. I served during the Viet Nam War. I was never in-country (SEA) and refuse to be grouped in with veterans who were. Many of my fellow veterans who never were in-country are quick to promote themselves an Viet Nam Era veterans, which they are officially classed as, but I don't even acknowledge that distant association. I was Stateside the entire time with the exception of a short temporary duty in the general vicinity at the close of hostilities. I think the article's Doug Sterner has got it right about these posers and there should be a price put on their heads. Sorry, this kind of crap doesn't put me in a good mood.


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## snafud1 (Jun 16, 2009)

Apperently , the best part of this guy ran down his mother's leg. What a douche.


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## ccheese (Jun 16, 2009)

I have only actually met one turkey like this, in a bar in San Diego in 1967. I had just come back from 11 friggin'
months in country. This loudmouth was spouting off about where he'd been and what he saw. The way he was
mis-pronouncing names was a dead give-away that he had not been there..... that he had read the newspaper.

In the Vietnam language an "H" is pronounced as a "wh" . The town of Ben Hoa is pronounce "Ben Wha". I'm not big
enough or mean enough to tangle horns with this type of person, but I sure can tell them what I think. The same
goes for the ba$tards who wear ribbons and medals they didn't earn. But that's a topic for another thread.

Charles


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## Njaco (Jun 16, 2009)

Now, now gentlemen Colin and Cosimo. Any bickerin' will be handled by .44 black powder and 50 paces at dawn!


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## Colin1 (Jun 16, 2009)

Njaco said:


> Now, now gentlemen Colin and Cosimo. Any bickerin' will be handled by .44 black powder and 50 paces at dawn!


That's OK Chris
all in fun; must admit I was a little confused when I saw my post header and someone else's name against it


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## timshatz (Jun 16, 2009)

Isn't the guy a head case? I mean outside of the obvious bs aspect of it, wasn't he a guy with mental problems?


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## Colin1 (Jun 16, 2009)

timshatz said:


> Isn't the guy a head case? I mean outside of the obvious bs aspect of it, wasn't he a guy with mental problems?


Thing is Tim
these people always fall back on the oh-I've-got/had-mental-problems-I-didn't-mean-anything-by-it; someone in the article actually mentions it


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## comiso90 (Jun 16, 2009)

Often... they who talk the most have done the least.

If you've been in the sh!t you don't want to talk about it... some may share experiences but they generally dont grandstand

.


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## timshatz (Jun 16, 2009)

I hear ya' Colin and I agree with ya', people do use that as a get out of jail card. But this dude actually spent time in shelters and has a history of being crazy. Not saying it gives him a hall pass, but it is something to factor in.

People that annoy me are the guys who claim they have a decoration or have been in the military, are not crazy or have mental problems and do it just for the official attaboy they get. I was thinking specifically of the Judge out in the Midwest who claimed to have had the MOH and hadn't even been in the military. Also, politicos who claim it. Those guy annoy me. Not from the military aspect of it, more from the scheeming aspect. Weasels.


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## Bernhart (Jun 16, 2009)

i work in a mental health hospital, we had a guy come in sent from his family Dr. He had her convinced he was suffering from PTSD (post tramatic stress disorder). she was ordering him all kinds of benzodiazapines, morphine for his bad knees, he had women coming in that he had met in bars that where feeling sorry fo him. He wasn't here with us more than 5 minutes and I had picked apart his story. He had regiments all wrong, said he was a sniper in an area where Canada didn't use snipers...

He came in wearing glasses, saying he had a complete medical discharge, but had the date he was discharged before the time he suppoded to have served. 

Last I heard he was being investigated by the police for obtaining care for under false pretenses.


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## Colin1 (Jun 16, 2009)

timshatz said:


> ...I was thinking specifically of the Judge out in the Midwest who claimed to have had the MOH and hadn't even been in the military...


That's a different level of weird
someone who already had a high level of respectability in his own profession pretending he had the same in someone else's. The kind of profile I'd normally associate with this type of behaviour is low self-esteem - you wouldn't really expect that from a judge.


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## pbfoot (Jun 16, 2009)

comiso90 said:


> Often... they who talk the most have done the least.
> 
> If you've been in the sh!t you don't want to talk about it... some may share experiences but they generally dont grandstand
> 
> .


100% right Most guys that have been you wouldn't even know they have until you read their obit


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## Butters (Jun 16, 2009)

About ten years ago I met a guy at friend's party. He was telling everyone that he was a former Syrian AF fighter pilot. A really good one, too. He'd shot down two Israeli F-15's...

JL


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## timshatz (Jun 17, 2009)

Butters said:


> About ten years ago I met a guy at friend's party. He was telling everyone that he was a former Syrian AF fighter pilot. A really good one, too. He'd shot down two Israeli F-15's...
> 
> JL



Hey now! That is impressive! The only two F15s that were never shot down and he got them. BOTH! 

That must be one really tough sim.


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## Sweb (Jun 20, 2009)

comiso90 said:


> Often... they who talk the most have done the least.
> 
> If you've been in the sh!t you don't want to talk about it... some may share experiences but they generally dont grandstand
> 
> .



In the circle of vets I've known from WWII and Korea none of them ever spoke directly about their respective combat engagements but rather generally and in a humorous tone poking fun at each other's misadventures related to specific engagements. They were a proud bunch but pretty reserved. I knew them because my Pop was one of them and there were reunions over the years. There were a couple light-hearted debates about the details of specific engagements. More to the point, my Pop never discussed his periods of combat and he never spoke of them at the reunions I was present at. He never even told my Mom. When he passed away I received some conciliatory calls from his comrades-in-arms citing his prowess as a fellow combatant and general good guy. So, basically, I know nothing about that period in his life aside from a vague story residing in the photographs, flight logbooks, military orders and citations he left behind.


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## Butters (Jun 20, 2009)

timshatz said:


> Hey now! That is impressive! The only two F15s that were never shot down and he got them. BOTH!
> 
> That must be one really tough sim.



That's basically what I said. When I pointed out that no F-15's had been shot down in air-to-air combat, he got really excited and started going on about how the Israelis always lie...blah blah blah.

The curious thing is that the guy WAS a pilot. The reason he was at the party was because my friend was a float-plane rating examiner, and the guy was in town to be checked out. I don't think that he was ever a fighter pilot, tho. He didn't seem to know much about MiGs or anything else tactical...

The point about the real veterans often being a low-key is something that i can personally attest to. My grandfather was a highly-decorated WWII veteran serving in Sicily and Italy (Where he was so seriously wounded he was over a year recovering. You could see the scars and fragments of shrapnel under the skin of legs and chest...). As he got older, he would tell me more and more about it, but would usually focus on the amusing stuff. Like how the neighboring Ghurkas would constantly call out, "Hey, Johhny. Come wrestle. Come wrestle.", to the Canadians. My gramps was a big, strong guy who'd worked in the woods all his life and he took the little fellows up on their offer. Once...

At his memorial service, the local Legion put together a display of his military record, which included documents showing that he'd been mentioned in despatches twice, and been awarded the Military Medal for Valour. He'd also taken part in three 11-man missions behind enemy lines. It was on the last one that he was seriously wounded when his unit got lost while being chased at night by the Germans and accidentally crossed the line (a river) three or four miles downstream from their planned crossing point. It was a Greek unit on his own side that blew him and his teamates to pieces...

He'd told me about the last, but never mentioned any of the others. He was Gunner Kendall Longmire, Forward Artillery Observer, RCA.

JL


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## Pong (Aug 5, 2009)

Remember Ferdinand Marcos of the Philippines who claims to be a veteran of a guerilla unit ‘Maharlika’ supposedly recognized by the U.S Government? I got this info from Raymond Bonner's book _Waltzing with a Dictator_. Marcos said he received the DSC, two Silver Stars and more than 20 other decorations. Obviously he never received any of those awards (Except for several Philippine medals which were given to him in the early '50s and '60s, which is really suspicious) and officers who had served with him said that his claims were "Pure BS". What's even more shocking, is that his father was a propagandist for the Japanese, a job which was recommended by his son Ferdinand.


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## proton45 (Aug 5, 2009)

Sending him to Iraq is too good for him...sending him to Iraq would only give him the chance to live out his fantasy. Just because he is a douche bag and a lair doesn't mean he is a coward. Pathological lairs are very cunning and frequently don't "feel' things the same way as you or me...The best thing, would be to rob him of what he craves the most...attention.

Their was a lady that did something very similar after 9/11...her name was "Tania Head". http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/27/nyregion/27survivor.html


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