Petition Launched To Stop Conmen Impersonating Soldiers
North East veterans say a law is desperately needed to stop conmen posing as war heroes.
North East veterans say a law is desperately needed to stop conmen posing as war heroes.
It comes after concerns some people could be conned out of donations as we gather for Remembrance services this week.
Some people around Teesside have reported seeing men dressed in combat gear selling wristbands for unknown charities.
So campaigners have started a petition to make impersonating a soldier against the law.
The USA have a law criminalising impersonation of service men and women, but there is no such law in place in the UK.
Sam Webster is a Captain with Stockton Marine Cadets and is part of a Facebook group who exposes these ‘Walter Mitty’ characters who pretend to be veterans.
He said: “We had over 450 deaths in Afghanistan, and to be honest, I find it a bit of an insult.
“Especially when you get people wearing campaign medals they’re not entitled to.
“It’s like shoving mud in their face really.”
Marcus Hawthorne from the British Legion says it’s particularly worrying that conmen could be targeting people at this time of year.
He said: “It’s not right to impersonate people who’ve gone through quite harrowing experiences many times.
“Those people have earned those medals and got them with good reason, and to pretend to be someone like that, I think is wrong.
“But that doesn’t mean there’s a law against it.”
Marcus suggests that anyone who has suspicions about someone collecting money dressed as a soldier can call the British Legion, or the police.