Marine veteran Paul Herbert accused of stealing more than $344K in benefits, lied on Purple Heart application: DOJ

A Marine veteran accused of stolen valor allegedly stole more than $344,000 in military disability benefits and submitted a Purple Heart application for injuries suffered in a roadside bombing that never occurred.

Paul John “PJ” Herbert, 52, of Shelburne Falls, Mass., was indicted by a federal grand jury and arrested Friday morning on one count of theft of the government and one count of making false statements, according to the Department of Justice.

Herbert allegedly stole more than $344,000 in veteran disability benefits “used to help veterans in need” from Jan. 1, 2010, to March 11, 2023, “falsely representing” himself as a decorated war hero injured in the line of service.

Herbert served in the Marines on active duty between 1989 to 1993 and in the reserves from 1993 to 1995.

Herbert also submitted an application to his local congressman for a Purple Heart in October 2018, claiming he suffered a traumatic brain injury from an IED (Improvised Explosive Device) during a deployment to Iraq following the end of the Gulf War.

“He not only stole tens of thousands of dollars in disability benefits that are supposed to be used to help veterans in need, but he also falsely claimed to have suffered a traumatic brain injury during his deployment in an effort to receive a Purple Heart he didn’t deserve,” said US Attorney Joshua S. Levy.

“Stealing from our country’s veterans or claiming valor where there is none is an insult to the honorable service members who sacrifice for our safety,” Levy added.

Herbert’s false claims were first unearthed last August after he was forced to apologize to his fellow veterans for embellishing his military service and receiving medals and money he had not earned, Greenfield Record reported.

“I just needed to feel important. I started feeling important and feeling good about myself and I didn’t know a way to get out,” Herbert told the outlet in 2022.

“I know I hurt a lot of people that trusted me and cared about me and everything else.”

The Upper Pioneer Valley Veterans’ Services started investigating a report of Herbert’s false claims in the fall of 2021, according to the outlet.

The service was first tipped off about Herbert’s fraudulent claims after the deputy director of the organization, Christopher Demars, attended an event where the alleged stolen valor veteran spoke of his time in Iraq to fellow veterans.

Herbert claimed to have survived a deadly IED attack in Northern Iraq while conducting military operations with the British Royal Marines to defend fleeing Kurdish refugees following the end of the Persian Gulf War.

He claimed British service members were killed during the attack.

“IEDs were not a thing until Afghanistan and Iraq,” Demars said.

Herbert later told the outlet there was no IED explosion and no Royal Marines were killed.

Herbert’s account of the attack was also not documented in his DD214 (a document of release or discharge from active duty given to service members upon leaving the military), according to Demars.

Herbert admitted to using an experience Demars had shared with him in private about being seriously wounded in Afghanistan which the alleged fraudster recounted as his own during an interview with the Daily Hampshire Gazette in 2017, the outlet reported.

Demars — a 27-year US Army Veteran who served in both Iraq and Afghanistan and was awarded two Purple Hearts and a Bronze Star with Valor — told Herbert of the time he regained consciousness by hearing a medical helicopter’s propellers coming for him after being injured.

“I told him that [expletive] story and he [expletive] used it,” Demars said to the outlet last year.

After being caught in the lie, Herbert had no choice but to man up to his actions.

“I know I did hurt Chris a lot,” Herbert told the outlet. “I apologized to him sincerely.”

If found guilty, Herbert faces up to five years in prison for making the false Purple Heart claim and 10 years in prison for stealing from the US government, according to the DOJ.

Both charges include “a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater.”