Phony War Heroes Disgrace Themselves While Insulting Veterans

Roy A. Toups of Independence, Mo., was a man's man with a hefty resume. At age 46, he was a former U.S. Navy SEAL and a retired rear admiral who wore the Medal of Honor. After retiring from the military, Toups worked as an undercover agent for the National Security Agency.

His girlfriend proudly displayed a photograph of Toups wearing his Navy whites, the SEAL trident and the Medal of Honor. But an alarm sounded when private detective Michael Davis happened to see the photo. A Navy veteran himself, Davis immediately recognized that Toups' medals were improperly displayed and that he was wearing a badge an admiral would never have worn. When Davis contacted the FBI, Toups' story quickly unraveled.

His real name is Ralph Ervin Crowder. Not only had he never been awarded the Medal of Honor, he was never a SEAL. In fact, Crowder never even served in the Navy. He bought the medal and uniform at a military surplus store in Albuquerque, N.M., and his NSA identification papers were as phony as he was.

On Sept. 3, 2002, Crowder donned an orange prison uniform instead of his Navy whites when he pled guilty to a felony (impersonating an NSA agent) and two misdemeanors (impersonating an officer and improperly displaying the Medal of Honor). He was sentenced to eight months in federal prison.

Crowder joins a long list of politicians, athletes, actors, judges, media stars and everyday Joes who exaggerate - or totally invent - tales of their wartime exploits. They include:

- Tim Johnson, former manager of baseball's Toronto Blue Jays, who liked to get his team pumped up for games by spinning gory tales about his time as a Marine in Vietnam. He was fired in 1999 when it was learned that he never served there.

- Oregon Congressman Wes Cooley, who in 1995 told reporters he was a Special Forces demolition expert during the Korean War. He continued to serve his country as a volunteer intelligence agent after leaving the military. When enterprising reporters checked his records, they learned Cooley had never left the United States during his time in uniform. He lost his bid for re-election.