Vet says he confronted soldier impersonator at mall

LANGHORNE, Pa. (KABC) -- A Pennsylvania veteran says he confronted a soldier impersonator at a local mall on Black Friday, and video of the confrontation is going viral.

It happened at the Oxford Valley Mall in Langhorne, Bucks County. The accused man's face is not being shown because he has not been charged with a crime.

While the man's uniform may have fooled some, it didn't take a local Purple Heart recipient long at all to spot it as a fake. And he wasn't standing for it.

Ryan Berk, 26, served as a sergeant in the 101st Airborne in Afghanistan. He says he spotted a guy in the mall dressed in fatigues, but things didn't look right.

In the video, Berk can be heard saying, "Hey sir. My son would like to meet you. He really admires guys in the Army."

The man in fatigues replied, "Hey buddy, I'm Sean."

The three-minute video moves quickly to Berk quizzing the man in uniform and finding his answers unsatisfying - specifically, he asks where the man got the three combat infantry badges the man displayed.

The man said, "Afghanistan."

Berk asked, "All three?" To which the man confirmed, "All three."

Berk then said, "You know you need to be in three different campaigns to get three CIBs, right?"

The interrogation goes downhill with Berk finding fault with items from the man's boots, to a misplaced flag patch.

"Why is your flag so low on your shoulder? It should be up here," Berk said, pointing to the man's arm.

"Got me on that one, bud," the man said.

After some harsh words, the man turns, telling Berk they are going to see his Sergeant Major.

Berk said to the man, "Why don't you admit you are a phony? I have worn that [expletive] uniform and I've had friends get killed in Afghanistan wearing that [expletive] uniform... No you haven't you're full of [expletive]. Stolen valor, right here."

ABC affiliate WPVI-TV tracked the man in the uniform to a house in Philadelphia, but no one answered the door.

Public records indicate an individual by the same name faced a prior charge in 2003 of impersonating a public servant.

Congressman Mike Fitzpatrick has asked the U.S. attorney to look into this recent incident to see if it violates the Federal Stolen Valor Act that makes it illegal to impersonate a soldier to obtain money or a tangible benefit.