5 newly exposed fakers - Marine Corps News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Marine Corps Times

5 newly exposed fakers

1. Name: Former Staff Sgt. Preston Garris

From: La Grange, N.C.

The lie: In order to be appointed to the Veterans Affairs Commission in North Carolina, Garris, in 2005, produced a DD 214 for the Department of Veterans Affairs stating he retired as a first lieutenant and earned a Silver Star and two Purple Hearts during the Vietnam War, said Charlie Smith, assistant secretary of the North Carolina Division of Veterans Affairs.

The reality: His real DD 214 provided by the Marine Corps states he got out of the Corps as a staff sergeant. One Purple Heart he earned after a portion of his leg was amputated due to a wound he sustained in the Vietnam War is not disputed. At press time, the Marine Corps was still trying to find records of his Silver Star and the second Purple Heart. Doug Sterner, who maintains a database of Silver Star recipients and is frequently contacted by the FBI and other government agencies for confirmation of awards, could not find him in his database.

The result: Once members began questioning his service in 2005, he resigned in November of that year, but he did not admit embellishing his record. He was also running for junior vice commander-in-chief of the Southern Conference of the Veterans of Foreign Wars at that time. His biography posted during his campaign on the VFW Web site reported he earned the Silver Star, Combat Action Ribbon and two Purple Hearts. Garris lost the election.

His case was investigated by the FBI, and the results of the investigation were handed off to the Justice Department this summer, but no charges have yet been filed, said FBI agent Greg Baker, who oversaw the investigation.

2. Name: Former Pvt. Roy Scott

From: Port Angeles, Wash.

The lie: Scott joined the local Marine Corps League and claimed to have left service as a major. The 71-year-old man claimed he fought in the Korean War and was pictured wearing the rank of major and a Purple Heart with a cluster, Combat Action Ribbon, Bronze Star and Korean War ribbons. He accepted almost $22,000 in VA medical benefits.

The reality: His DD 214 states he received a bad-conduct discharge and got out as a private. Scott was 14 years old when the Korean War began and didn’t enlist until Oct. 23, 1953, more than three months after the war ended.

The result: Dan Abbott, the commandant of the local Marine Corps League, said other league members grew suspicious of Scott as he shied away from the other Marine officers and spoke like a “dirt private.” Abbott, with help from retired FBI agent Tom Cottone, launched an investigation into Scott’s record.

Scott pleaded guilty on Aug. 31 in federal court to using an altered military discharge certificate to obtain VA compensation and medical benefits and to unlawfully wearing military medals. On the day of his plea, he handed the judge a check for the amount of money received from the VA. He will be sentenced Nov. 30 by U.S. Magistrate Judge Mary Alice Theiler in Seattle.

3. Name: Former Lance Cpl. Glenn Marshall

From: Mashpee, Mass.

The lie: As chairman of the Wampanoag Indian Tribe, Marshall led the charge to gain federal recognition for his tribe by stating publicly and testifying under oath during a 2004 House committee hearing that he was a survivor of the Battle of Khe Sanh during the Vietnam War in 1968.

The reality: Corps manpower officials confirmed that Marshall, who exited the Corps as a lance corporal in 1970 after 23 months of service, was not yet a Marine when the 77-day battle for Khe Sanh began, and was still in the Corps’ initial training pipeline when it ended. Though Marshall’s records do indicate at least one deployment to Vietnam as an infantryman, his record contains no awards such as the Combat Action Ribbon to suggest he ever heard a shot fired in anger.

The result: Within days of being exposed as a military faker by newspapers in Cape Cod, Mass., and New London, Conn., information surfaced about Marshall’s 1981 rape conviction, and the Wampanoag tribal council ousted him as its chairman. Though he didn’t mention the rape conviction, Marshall issued a public apology for lying about his military service.

“I am proud of my service in the Vietnam War and stand by the service I provided for my country during that horrific period of history,” he wrote. “Like others who were part of the war, the years that followed my service are not something I’m proud of. I am proud of the rehabilitation and turnaround in my life following those years, and am proud of what the tribe has accomplished. I am sorry to have distorted my record and to allow it to stand uncorrected. Like a lot of veterans from that era, I realize I have my own demons that I need to deal with.”

4. Name: Maurice Foxx

From: Boston

The lie: As head of the Massachusetts State Commission on Indian Affairs, Foxx’s official biography was published on that agency’s Web site, stating that he had served “in the U.S. Marine Corps during the Vietnam War.”

The reality: Manpower officials who searched the Corps’ personnel records confirmed that there has never been a Maurice Foxx in the ranks.

The result: Foxx’s official biography on the state’s Web site has been changed; all references to the Marine Corps and Vietnam have been deleted. Foxx could not be reached by Marine Corps Times, but told the Cape Cod (Mass.) Times in a telephone interview that he had never read his official biography online, was unaware that it mistakenly portrayed him as a former Marine and ordered that it be fixed as soon as he found out.

5. Name: Former Pfc. Elven Swisher

From: Cottonwood, Idaho

The lie: Swisher claimed he was a Korean War hero who took part in highly classified missions to free U.S. prisoners of war. He claimed to have earned the Silver Star, Purple Heart, Navy and Marine Corps Medal, and Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with combat “V.” He also claimed to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder to obtain additional benefits from the VA.

The reality: He served in the Marine Corps on active duty from 1954 to 1957. He was demoted to private first class from corporal after being court-martialed three times during his service.

The result: The twist to Swisher’s case was that he was discovered after he wore a Purple Heart pin while testifying in a courtroom that he had been requested by a local businessman to kill a U.S. district judge, an assistant U.S. attorney and an Internal Revenue Service special agent who had a dispute with the IRS.

He was arrested in July and charged in the Idaho District Court with wearing unauthorized military medals, theft of government funds and two counts of making false statements, according to court documents. He could face up to 20 years and 6 months in prison along with a $755,000 fine, charging documents state.