Stolen valor accusation results in intense standoff on video

WTVD logo
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
(Shutterstock)
Shutterstock

SUNRISE, Fla. -- A tense altercation that almost broke out into a fight was caught on camera when a man wearing an Army uniform at a bar was accused of pretending to be a member of the military.

WARNING: PROFANE LANGUAGE. CLICK HERE TO WATCH.

Eric Coins recorded the incident on his smartphone, as he and an unidentified friend approached a man in uniform.

"This guy was trying to pick up girls and get sympathy drinks in a battle ready uniform which wasn't even on properly let alone, wearing it at a bar," Coins wrote on YouTube. "So we asked a few basic questions which threw him off and couldn't answer even where he got his infantry training or even boot camp for that matter."

"Where is your name badge?" asked the young man in the video. "You wanna see mine? In my car? Wanna see my name?" responded the man in uniform, clearly becoming indignant to the questioning.

"Are you a cop?" asked the allegedly fake veteran. "You know it's a federal offense what you're doing right now?" said the young man.

When the young man corrects him on the location of infantry boot camp, the tense argument quickly turns threatening as the man in uniform stomps toward his accuser and and two scream profanity at each other.

In a followup video (WARNING: PROFANE LANGUAGE), the alleged fake veteran is in a state of undress as bouncers have separated the two men who continue to scream and threaten one another from opposite ends of the bar.

ABC has reached out to Coins for comment, though have not received a response at time of publication.

Coins and his friend are not the first to confront someone they believe to be posing as a veteran. "Stolen valor" has become a hot topic in recent years, with stories of outrage over everyday citizens posing as combat veterans. Recently, Army veteran Garrett Goodwin was captured on video confronting an allegedly fake veteran panhandler in a controversial viral video.

Copyright © 2024 WTVD-TV. All Rights Reserved.