On 22 April 2003 the following Newspaper clipping appeared in the local newspaper.

 

Regimental number QX21422.

His regimental number was 121422, not QX21422. His CMF service was so ineffectual that he could not even remember his regimental number. See his Attestation Form that was filled out on his enlistment, his regimental number is very clear.

Schmidt did not volunteer for service in Korea. We have perused records of his entire military career and see nothing but a record of a man who never completed recruit training in the eleven months before he requested a discharge.

 

Schmidt seconded to D Company, Moreton Regiment 2/9 Battalion (Infantry) AIF. Schmidt served for his entire enlistment of eleven months, with 9^th Infantry Battalion, Kelvin Grove, Brisbane Queensland.

 

Embarked for Korea on Board HMAS Duntroon.

 

HMAS Duntroon disabled off the Philippines, troops transferred to HMAS Leeuwin returned to Australia

No such incident occurred. According to Senior Naval Historical Officers, Department of Defence, Canberra.    MV Duntroon completed troop-carrying duties in 1949/1950, and then returned to coastal shipping duties. In the book "The Official History of Australian the Korean War 1950 –1953" by Robert O'Neill there is no mention of the MV Duntroon whatsoever.

 

Discharged at the end of 1950

Schmidt was discharged from the CMF on 12 September 1950. Still a Private recruit.

 

Schmidt also verbalises a slightly different story about his embarkation and return to Australia.   He tells stories of his attempt to participate in the Korea conflict, it goes like this.

 

"Embarked for Korea on MV Duntroon, en route the MV Duntroon was shelled by a Russian submarine and sunk.   I survived and boarded the MV Cape Leeuwin. I returned to Brisbane never having reached Korea and discharged from the CMF in November 1950. I was awarded two or three campaign medals, which I lost."

 

Schmidt shows around a photo of "himself" and a group of soldiers on the wharf at "Pinkenba, Brisbane" on the day of his dreamed up "embarkation" and departure on the MV Duntroon.

 

We are reliably advised that the person circled, that Schmidt purports to be himself, is in fact a Lieutenant, and the Lieutenant and the soldiers in the photo, are all from 4 Platoon, B Company 3 ^rd Royal Australian Regiment.  The photo was taken in Korea very soon after the very famous battle of Kapyong on the 23^rd and 24^th April 1951.

 

The same photograph hawked around by Schmidt as his embarkation evidence unfortunately (for Schmidt) appeared in the Brisbane Daily Mail on the 24 ^th April 1994 as a story about the battle of Kapyong and depicts soldiers of 3^rd Battalion Royal Australian Regiment.

 

Pillar of the community, RSL President and ex School Principal

Colin Schmidt is a pillar of the Kingaroy community and (until now) a very respected veteran of the Korea conflict, a retired school principal, a former six term president of the Returned Services League (RSL) and still a senior and very active member of the League. We visited Kingaroy and photographed their honour board, that shows Schmidt as serving as President in 1992,1993,1996, 1997,1998 and 1999.   See below.
 

Schmidt claims RSL membership and veteran status on the basis of embarking for service in Korea in 1950.   As per his newspaper story. – Now that you have seen his service records it can only be concluded that everything he has said about embarking for Korea is a lie. He served his whole term in the CMF at Kelvin Grove, Brisbane from 11 ^th October 1949 to 12^th September 1950.  Schmidt was a Private recruit, who never completed his recruit training in his eleven months service.

 

It is difficult to understand how a person can cope with the knowledge that they are living a lie, and liable to exposure at any time, exposure, that will destroy their reputation. This is particularly so in medium sized rural towns where prominent people are known by most of the residents.

 

The Schmidt saga is an open and shut case, of a country town becoming blinded, by a con man seeking self-gratification by claiming to be a veteran of the Korea conflict, when in fact his service consists of eleven months CMF service as a Private recruit. He chose to seek this gratification in the local Returned Services League (RSL), in which he has held the office of president on six occasions.   There are lots of clubs where people could gain notoriety and respect in a country town, like Rotary and Lions, but Schmidt, for some reason needed to be seen as an RSL member and a returned Korea veteran.

 

We understand an audit of membership bona fides is now under way.   If you have a Wannabe who has held the Presidents position six times, then he could have allowed anyone to become a member. When more than one of these impostors gain entry they multiply exponentially and the integrity of the RSL is very much compromised.

 

Have no pity for Schmidt. Genuine veterans are ordinary people, however, unlike Schmidt, for a period of their lives they have given extraordinary service to qualify for veteran status.   As a result of their service, many veterans suffer mightily. Schmidt has never given active service and never been anything but a CMF private recruit.   Should he have had the desire in 1950 to serve in Korea he could have done so, but he chose not to do the hard yards. Now, after what he thinks is a time beyond people's ability to expose him as a fraud, he claims veteran status and basks in the kudos of that status.

 

Schmidt, an ex school principal didn't do the hard yards, but claims the honour, and he is exposed as a conman, a liar and a cheat, a status that is hard to abide in a rural Australian town.

 

From 1983 the minimum requirement for RSL membership is six months continuous CMF service.   Locals reliably advise us that Schmidt was a member of the RSL for many years before 1983. At that time membership criterion of the RSL was that the member be returned from active service. It can be assumed that Schmidt has been posing as a Korean Veteran for more than 40 years. Schmidt is not a soldier who has returned from active service and never even completed his CMF recruit training, yet he has risen to the high office of president of the Kingaroy RSL on six occasions.

 

The Newspaper article shown above details Schmidt's regimental number as QX21422.   Soldiers never forget their regimental number, but if you joined the CMF and then never really attended, perhaps you may forget. The regimental number QX21422 belongs to a real WW2 soldier, this could and should have been checked by the Kingaroy RSL, who by their inaction have aided and abetted this man in his disgraceful conduct.

 

To support his membership of the RSL Schmidt has developed a line of answers to deflect questions from persons suspicious of him. His stories are so silly that his cloak of respectability that comes with being a local school principal must have blinded people.   Just ponder  – this lying fraud of a schoolteacher has presided over the education, and to some extent the moral and ethical standards of many generations of Kingaroy citizens.

 

As well as being a moral hypocrite, he is also a physical thief as he wears a Korea medal (pictured above) that he is not entitled to. Schmidt says that he was issued with three Korea medals but has lost them. Also he says he was never issued with any discharge papers.

 

Schmidt wears one medal, after claiming to have lost three others. The one that he wears has a regimental number and name endorsed on it.   We are reliably advised that the name on the medal is not his, but it belonged to a genuine RAAF Korea veteran.  The medal was presented to the Kingaroy RSL and now it is being worn by Schmidt, - do we detect an offence under Federal and Queensland law?

 

As we do with all ex service people, we sent Schmidt a letter asking him to explain his behaviour. A copy of our letter is shown below.
 
Mr C W Schmidt

76 Haly Street

Kingaroy  Qld 4610                                                                    27 January 2006


Dear Mr Schmidt

Our organisation protects the honour of veterans; you may wish to see our web site at www.anzmi.net <http://www.anzmi.net/> . 

It has come to our attention that you claim to be a veteran of the Korea War.

We have been unable to find any evidence that you served in Korea, or embarked from Australia with the intention of serving in Korea.

We note that on occasions you have worn the Korea Medal.

It is requested that you please produce some documentary evidence to support your claim of service in Korea and your eligibility to wear the Korea Medal.

We ask that you respond to this letter by the 5th February 06.   Please address your answer to XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Should you choose to ignore this letter we will consider publishing your details on our web site.

If you produce evidence that you are a genuine Korean Veteran, we will not bother you again.

Yours sincerely
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx


Schmidt was quick to answer our letter, and we are sure that members of the Kingaroy RSL will be amazed to read that Schmidt claims no involvement whatsoever in Korea, and he claims to have found the Korea Medal in a garbage bin and was not aware it was an offence for him to wear this medal.

 

 

 

Note that Schmidt has decided to resign from the RSL and claims poor health.   It is suggested that the resignation is well timed, because, there are a lot of RSL members who will find it hard to believe Schmidt's letter after all of the lies he has told them about his Korean escapade, especially, the bit about embarking from Pinkenbar on the M V Duntroon, and being shelled by a Russian Submarine, climbing up the cargo nets of the rescue ship, and seeing his mates killed during this action. Schmidt lied to his friends and deceived the Kingaroy community and now lies to us in his letter of apology. We judge him as a blatant liar, and expose him as a unrepentant Wannabe who is well worthy of the wrath of the Kingaroy community. 

 

It was not really very wise to create history by sinking a ship, especially the very famous WW2 Troop Carrier MV Duntroon. Schmidt says it was damaged or sunk in 1950. The MV Duntroon was not damaged in 1950 and did not sink. The Senior Naval Historical Officer, Department of Defence, Canberra says it had no role in the Korean war, it was never sunk and was towed out of Melbourne in 1960 for breaking up.

 

There is no doubt that Schmidt has fraudulently posed as a Korea veteran for many years in the Kingaroy area of Queensland and he has supported his posing with some very "lame brain" poorly researched "stories".

 

Schmidt you are a fraud, now it is time to get out of the RSL then apologise to the citizens of Kingaroy who, for your own gratification, you have deceived and conned for many years.

 

Schmidt has posed as a war veteran and therefore will feature on this site for the rest of his days.   We suggest to Schmidt and to all Wannabes polluting our veteran community that you seek help from a psychologist, for your devious personality defects and disorders.  

 

Below are the details off the medal Schmidt claims to have found in the trash.  If you are the owner of the medal, or a surviving Next of Kin of this Serviceperson and would like the medal please contact us for information on where the medal is currently being securely held.

 

 

 

Start of service End of Service Unit 4 October 1952 25 February 1953 No. 77 (Fighter) Squadron 7 May 1953 22 May 1953 No. 77 (Fighter) Squadron 8 June 1953 18 November 1953 No. 77 (Fighter) Squadron

9 March 2006.  See here the South Burnett Times  front page news.
 

 

This is published in the public interest, particularly that of the Veteran community. All information presented is fact and the truth. Information was gleaned from communications between ANZMI and Mr Schmidt  and reports received from private citizens. Statements of fact and statutory declarations support these reports.