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Grand jury: A fake
North East man charged with making military claims
By Steven M. Sweeney
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A North East man who never served in war has been indicted on charges he claimed he received Army medals the government said he was never awarded.
Dale G. Farr is accused of lying about the medals to get a military discount on the purchase of a car and to get a Purple Heart license plate.
A federal grand jury in
Erie
indicted Farr, 56, on four counts of falsely representing military decorations between Oct.5, 2005, and August in
Erie
and Crawford counties.
In a separate indictment, the grand jury also charged Farr with two counts of counterfeiting or forging securities and one count of bank fraud.
In one set of documents released Tuesday, the grand jury said Farr claimed to have been awarded the Purple Heart, Silver Star, Bronze Star for Valor and Bronze Star during service with the U.S. Army in Afghanistan after the U.S.-led invasion of that country in 2001.
The U.S. Attorney's Office also said Farr claimed to be an Army captain and a member of the U.S. Special Forces. Farr was a member of the Army, but was an Army private first class who was given a general discharge for misconduct in 1995, according to the indictment.
The grand jury found that Farr claimed the medals to receive a discount on an automobile, to apply for a Purple Heart license plate and to help advertise automobiles for sale in a Veterans Day advertisement. He also made the claims in verbal and written statements to various people between November 2005 and August.
Farr could not be reached for comment.
Vance Carter, a member of the National Military Order of the Purple Heart and a veteran of World War II and the Korean War, said there are several cases he is aware of in the Erie area where people have claimed military honors they did not deserve.
"Most of the ones I have encountered are people going into schools. People telling stories about how they earned their medals, which were false. They want to feel like they are heroes," Carter said. "It is definitely a serious affront to (veterans who deserved the awards) -- others trying to cash in on their experiences as a combat-wounded veteran."
Carter said he has not encountered a person claiming medals for money or for special discounts, just men who feel like they want to be part of a more elite club of combat-wounded soldiers.
The second indictment alleged Farr had defrauded the Erie Federal Credit Union of more than $130,000 by depositing checks drawn on fictitious or closed accounts into his credit union account, then wiring the money to a third bank and withdrawing the funds from there.
The grand jury indictment said Farr first deposited $13,475 in faulty checks in Aug. 14, 2006, and withdrew $14,529 before the credit union realized the deposits were drawn on closed accounts. On Aug. 23, 2006, the indictment said, Farr deposited a phony check in the amount of $150,158 payable to himself. Of that amount, he wired $130,000 to an account at a third bank with which he did business.
After credit union officials discovered the deficient amounts in Farr's account, he told them he received instructions from the "Itochu Corporation" to deposit the $150,000 and keep $20,000 for himself, according to the indictment. Farr then filed a false complaint with the Internet Crime Complaint Center, claiming he had been a victim of fraud and presented a copy of his filings to the credit union, the grand jury found.
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