A man masquerading as a decorated US marine had his charade busted wide open when he turned up to a school reunion and met a real navy commander.
Steven Burton, 39, went to the reunion in California wearing a Marine Corps uniform and a chest full of medals including the Purple Heart, Bronze Star and Navy Cross, CNN reports.
A former classmate at the reunion, Colleen Salonga, grew suspicious about the medals and asked to take a photo with Burton.
She then sent the picture to the FBI who discovered Burton had never served with any branch of the US military and was actually a bank employee.
The investigation uncovered several other photographs of Burton dressed as a marine.
He also wrote an online blog in which he recounted his "combat experience" and tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Burton posted a picture of himself on the blog standing on a beach at Coronado Island, California, wearing a marine uniform.
Burton is now facing criminal charges for wearing unauthorised medals and is expected to front a federal US court today.
He faces a maximum penalty of one year in jail.
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