80-year-old phony soldier

| March 12, 2010

The folks at POW Net sent me this article from KATU’s local news about an 80-year-old busted in Portland Oregon named Lafayette Keaton who has been playing hero for decades. In the audio file above, you listen to him ramble on about his war experiences. The story he’s reciting about the Los Banos rescue happened when he was 15 years old.

Yeah, he spent time in the Army, but he never served in any war – he showed up in Korea after the shooting stopped. He never went to Ranger School, according to Fort Benning, never went to jump school, according to Fort Benning. But fraud is nothing new for Keaton;

In addition to his lies, Keaton has just been indicted on voter and Social Security fraud, accused of stealing the identity of his dead son and dead brother.

But that’s not all.

In 1960 he was convicted of endangering a child. In 1972 he was convicted of kidnapping a toddler he fathered, but he got that conviction expunged.

In the 1980s, he was sent to prison for taking thousands of dollars from the state for creating a fictitious foster home. Up until that time he worked as a juvenile parole officer.
It was then Keaton began rewriting his history.

He’s nothing but a petty criminal – good on the locals for busting him.

ADDED: The folks at POW Net send this link to their collection of Keaton’s chicanery with a proviso that that this only the tip of the iceburg, but that law enforcement agencies are holding much of his antics close to their vests.

Category: Phony soldiers

5 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
B Woodman

With that kind of track record, throw him under the jail & allow in air & sunshine on alternate Tuesdays.

B Woodman

Oh, that is AFTER he’s had a little wall-to-wall counceling from some REAL soldiers of the same organization that he’s pretended to be a part of all these years.

defendUSA

If my 10+ 80 year old Legion members had it in them, they would get the can o whoop ass. Nothing pissed them off more. Frigging shitbird.

Respect America

I can see where some non-military types try to be glory hounds by creating fantasy. But, why anyone who served a day in the US Military would need to embellish his record???

I served in the USAF for 20 years, and maybe my duty was routine office work, but I enjoyed it and someone had to do it!!

I remember the old commercials on AFN/AFRTS overseas. Every military job is important!!

I took that to heart.

Prosecute those jackballs!

Frankly Opinionated

Do these loonies not realize that their service records are but a click or two away from the public eye?
And, I agree fully with “Respect America”. I served “between the wars”, yet was ready to answer any call offered me. That I did not get involved with the shitstorm that was “Nam, makes me no less a soldier and patriot than the guy that collected on his fair share of Purple Hearts, and whatever medal of glorification that accompanied them. That someone has “combat experience” is a special claim. That many of us were denied that line on our DD-214 does nothing to diminish our importance.
Thank a Vet today, whether he/she have combat time or not. We All Served, and We All Were Ready to Answer the Call.

Nuf Sed