To feel sorry for the fake admiral

[MajesticWhine]

It seems to be a victimless crime and I don’t think he was doing anyone any harm. Given the amount of crimes such as shoplifting that go unpunished AIBU to think this man should be let off with a caution?

‘Fake admiral’ charged after Remembrance memorial
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/gift/4d56e1d99d56fda6

There are a lot of people who do this. Grief thieves I call them. Look up that woman who pretended to be a survivor of the 911 attack. Turned up at all the events and was included in it all, praised. Then found out she was never even anywhere near. It's vile behaviour but I also think it must be a mental condition like munchausens?

There was a real Admiral on Channel 5 news saying he doesn't feel angry at people like that like some do. He just feels sorry for them as they are sad individuals

The former Chief Constable of Northamptonshire got done for this in the last year or so.
Lied about serving in the Falkland's war, when in fact he was only 15 years old at the time.
He put it on his CV, which he used to get numerous jobs in the police, right up to chief constable.
Even when he was caught (amusingly, it was his ex-wife who helped build the case against him), he couldn't own up, instead spouting some lie about the medals belonging to his uncle or something.
In the end, he was suspended for ages, and then dismissed following a tribunal.

He just got too cocky. He'd have got away with the lie on the CV (and did for years), but when he ultimately got too big for his boots and started wearing the medals out in the public, that was the final straw.

He wasn’t charged with stolen valour as that is not a criminal offence in the UK.

Stolen valour is perfectly legal.

Using it to commit fraud of course isn’t but he hasn’t been charged with that either because I assume no fraud has yet come to light.

He got charged with a uniform offence. That is really only in place to help prevent fraudulent activity taking place. It has nothing to do with stolen valour or disrespect.

That’s correct. He committed fraud and lied to gain his position. That’s very different to this case.

I think people who do stuff like this must be mentally unwell. I can't see any other alternative, really.

I agree

I don't like the "did something odd therefore must be mentally unwell" assumption / narrative

He is a sad character who needs help. His behaviour is not that of a happy well balanced person, it’s delusional and just bloody bonkers.
Yes I feel sorry for him, he needs assessing to see whether he is just a loony or a dangerous individual.

This was my first reaction. He dressed up and made a fool of himself, no harm done. It seemed harmless and the ridicule and notoriety will have ruined him, punishment enough.
I then saw the news and all those military types seemed genuinely upset about it as are posters on this thread. I understand more now but still think prosecution is a bit ott.

Loony? I see you have attended the stigma & society module

Not all odd behaviour is attributable to mental health
Reasons?Other secondary gain. Praise, favourable treatment, pretend status, attention seeking. None of these motives are necessarily confirmation of mental health issues.

I don't know.

Why would someone want praise and attention for something that they hadn't done if they didn't have some sort of mental health problem?

Favourable treatment - maybe? But what kind of favourable treatment did this guy actually get?

TLDR: article says Charles went on a few courses, and spent a short time on a RN ship. Never in harm's way, just a random elongated tax-payer funded work experience.

King Charles served in the Royal Navy and is fully entitled to wear his medals.

Attention-seeking wanker?

Well, obviously. But what makes someone go to such lengths to seek attention in the first place?

Surely it must be some sort of deficit in their mental state that causes them to behave like this?

I am married to a veteran, my husband served in the RAF for 33 years, 8 months and 11 days. He EARNED the medals he wears with pride.

This walt was trying to make himself look and feel important and got caught out. He only has himself to blame. If he wanted to wear medals that badly then maybe he should have signed up to one of the military services and earned them.

It always amazes me that people can’t believe another human can be selfish or do something horrible without having a mental illness.

Some people are just assholes, no mental illness or intellectual disability, just assholes.

I’ll say it again. Not all unsavoury behaviour is attributed to mental health
He will have been treated with kindness,respect,kind gaze when presumed to be a veteran. Participation in an event. Photos, press, socialise with others at event. Pretending to be a valourous individual.

Munchausen syndrome by proxy is a discredited diagnosis,it’s not used anymore. It was always problematic
Munchausen syndrome by proxy requires a fictitious illness with a narrative. This man hasn’t an accompanying narrative of illness

They do all get extra medals though and climb up the ranks despite having left the Forces. Not just Charles but all of them. Even the York girls husbands get medals just for existing! We cant have an offence of 'stolen valour' because our RF have a massive dressing up box and medals for being born the child of a Monarch or marrying a member of the RF!

Interesting! Is / was the Army guy in the Army as far as you are aware? Any observations on their characters?

Yeah, I get it honestly. Personally I'd do away with the lot of them.
I'm not even convinced that those royals who actually served did anything heroic, I feel that probably just got in the way and their security/privilege kind of makes a mockery of the military.
But I meant, what they're doing is not illegal as opposed to the fake admiral.

I agree.
It's becoming far too common to attribute any kind of bad behaviour to MH.

A closer reading of the article tells me that King Charles served in the Royal Navy for 4 years, so not 'a short time.'

https://www.forcesnews.com/king-charles/king-charles-iii-look-new-forces-commander-chiefs-military-career

Details his service nicely.

The following is taken from Wikipedia:His military training began in 1969, during his second year at Cambridge, where he received RAF training, learning to fly the Chipmunk aircraft with the Cambridge University Air Squadron,[40][41] and was presented with his RAF wings in August 1971.[42]After the passing out parade that September, Charles embarked on a naval career and enrolled in a six-week course at the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth. Following his naval training he then served from 1971 to 1972 on the guided-missile destroyer HMS Norfolk and the frigates HMS Minerva, from 1972 to 1973, and HMS Jupiter in 1974. That same year, he also qualified as a helicopter pilot at RNAS Yeovilton, and during his training to be a helicopter pilot underwent commando training at Commando Training Centre Royal Marines at Lympstone.[43] Charles subsequently joined a Royal Marines air support squadron of the Fleet Air Arm, 845 Naval Air Squadron, operating as a pilot, from HMS Hermes, flying the Royal Marines commando variant of the Westland Wessex helicopter.[44][45]Charles spent his last 10 months of active service in the Navy commanding the coastal minehunter HMS Bronington, beginning on 9 February 1976.[44] He retired from active military service in 1976 at the rank of Commander.[46] Two years later he took part in the parachute training course at RAF Brize Norton after being appointed colonel-in-chief of the Parachute Regiment in 1977, and was a member of Parachute Course 841a