Like the majority of wannabes from any country, he chose to present himself as a former member of an elite unit. He actually went so far as to choose two elite units and an association with another.

A three tour, former British SAS soldier, who was attached to 1^st Special Forces in Vietnam and what would have to have been the Australian Army Training Team Vietnam (AATTV), he also claimed he won the British Military Cross in Borneo or Vietnam. No he wasn’t and no he didn’t.

Let us be quite clear on one thing from the outset, we are not attempting to denigrate the purpose of, or work done by, the Legion of Frontiersmen.

We have absolutely no reason to denigrate the services supplied to whatever community by well-meaning members of this organisation but according to our charter we have a dedication to the ex-Service Communities of Australia and New Zealand to expose those who attempt to steal the Honour and Valour of our comrades in arms.

It has been reported that there are individuals within this organisation, both here in Australia and overseas, who misrepresent or have invented their Military Service.

Here we will expose an impostor, who, while he perpetuated his fraud in the US, has claimed War Service with an elite Australian unit.  We will also highlight another Legion of Frontiersmen member who has already appeared on our “Cases” page. There is a long history of organisations using actual highly decorated War Veterans and also big-talking wannabes as drawcards to increase membership.

This was the URL for the Legion of Frontiersmen in the US, http://www.legion-of-frontiersmen.org but it was removed from public view in July 2004 after a genuine War Veteran queried Weatherall’s service claims and medal rack.

This is a reply received by the Veteran.

Lieutenant-General Robin Weatherall, MC, LOF.  Robin does indeed have the Military Cross.  He serviced with the 21 SAS and got it in Borneo.  This is confirmed on the British Military website...but they will not comment on the citation as SAS do not have their citations published...only that they have them.

Robin was further seconded to the Australian Army and subsequently the US Army in Viet Nam.  His records are well documented.

Now, this reply above is clearly not from a Military historian, or even anyone who rose above the rank of Recruit in any Army, it is clearly from a perennial civilian.   This gentleman and his fellow members had been deceived by Weatherall.   The post nominal LOF stands for Legion Of Frontiersmen, we don’t think this membership rates a post nominal, neither does membership of the IOC.

Unfortunately we couldn’t find the British Military website that confirms this Military Cross awarded for service in Borneo but we found historical information that denies it, and Weatherall’s claimed service, emphatically.

He was born on 5 July 1942 and claims War Service as a Captain in the SAS prior to 2 March 1962. (Do the maths)

If we look at this supposed sequence of events, SAS Borneo, seconded to the Aust Army and then the US Army in Vietnam, Robin had to be an extremely young Officer to have accomplished this, not yet 20 years of age.

Firstly Borneo, British 21 SAS soldiers did not serve there as a unit or sub-unit and there was no Officer by this name who ever served in Borneo with the SAS, neither British nor Australian.

Secondly, the time frame suggests he would have served with the AATTV in Vietnam, which he did not.

Lastly, the well documented records mentioned in the reply above don’t appear to be in evidence anywhere. There are no official records of Weatherall having served in any Army. We are quite aware of the role played by 21 SAS in the overall scheme of things in the British Army but unfortunately we can’t pass this on here.

Here’s the citation for bravery he presented to his friends and supporters in the Legion of Frontiersmen. The blacked out line at the top probably contained the name of his “Unit within the Regiment” that he had typed but “the Secrecy Act” forbade him to disclose. We have re-typed it verbatim for clarity and the original photocopy copy is available below.

Weatherall Robin J.

 

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX on attachment to 1st Special Forces, MAAG.

 Place and Date.  Trung Luong, Republic of Vietnam, 2 March 1962.

 Born 5 July, 1942, London.

 Citation.

For conspicuous gallantry in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty, Captain Weatherall

distinguished himself in action while leading his Team on a search and destroy in an area made particularly

hazardous as it was behind enemy lines. Suddenly his Team came under small arms, automatic weapons, mortar and rocket propelled grenade fire, from a battalion size enemy unit. During the initial hostile attack, communication with Headquarters was lost and the 3 members of the team and the 2 Green Beret observers became casualties. When Capt. Weatherall observed that they were pinned down, he moved to the front with complete disregard for his safety, firing his weapon at the charging enemy. As he moved forward he drew fire on his own position and was seriously wounded in the leg. As the hostile fire intensified Capt Weatherall initiated the evacuation of his dead comrades while providing covering fire. He killed several enemy soldiers but sustained another leg wound when his weapon was destroyed by incoming rounds. Undaunted, he crawled through a hail of enemy fire to an operable machine gun in order to continue the defense of the evacuation. Capt. Weatherall maintained this position, refused medical assistance, and provided defensive fire for his comrades until the bodies had been safely removed to the waiting Helicopter. He was solely responsible for killing 16 enemy soldiers while saving the lives of the rescue unit. Captain Weatherall’s gallantry and extraordinary heroism were in keeping with the highest traditions of his Regiment and reflect great credit on himself, his unit, and the British Army.

 (Unsigned)
 

 

This would be the clumsiest, most amateurish, childlike, attempt at a forgery of a Military document we have ever seen and anyone with a Military background should have dismissed it as garbage as soon as it was presented.  Why was it accepted by his Frontiersmen colleagues?

A four member SAS Team and two Green Beret observers on a search and destroy operation behind enemy lines?   This information alone is sufficient to brand the document a forgery and if this wasn’t such a serious crime to commit, it would be laughable.  His terminology is completely wrong indicating that he’d never been in the British or any other Military.

If Weatherall had supposedly won the Military Cross in Borneo prior to this event, what could have been awarded for this valorous service?  It was otherwise stated that this action in Vietnam earned him the Military Cross and the other medals on his chest.   His MC won in Borneo or Vietnam?   The tangled web is getting confusing isn’t it?

We managed to find some villages named Trung Luong and there are 5 of them, the 4 most notable being in the Chu Prong, Ia Drang, area where it’s very doubtful that Brit SAS search and destroy teams patrolled with Green Beret observers.  Besides that, Brit SAS did not operate in Vietnam.   We think he found this name on a 101^st Airborne website, they were in the area in 1966 and we found the website too.   The fifth Trung Luong is just south of Hanoi and we trust it isn’t this one he thinks he was at.

If we look at British SAS service in Borneo, it did not begin until 1963 so we naturally wondered how Weatherall could have been awarded the Military Cross for service in Borneo and then go to Vietnam to receive a citation for some mysterious award in 1962.   Perhaps someone else picked up on this as well and that’s why the citation appeared, moving the valorous actions to another country.

Remember that Weatherall was born on 5 July 1942 so on 2 March 62 he was 19 years and 8 months old.   A Captain in the British SAS at this age?   Impossible. He should have checked the minimum age for Officers graduating from Military College and then completing SAS training.

Here’s something that denies his claims and forged documents.
 

 

Here are the miniature medals worn by Weatherall on Frontiersmen ceremonial occasions.
 

 

If we look closely at these miniature medals, we see:

British (Empirical) Military Cross.   Fact.  Weatherall was not awarded the Military Cross.

British (Empirical) General Service Medal with clasps Northern Ireland, Vietnam and Borneo.  Facts.  The General Service Medal was not issued without a bar or clasp and the clasp “Vietnam” was issued only to members of the Australian Army.   Weatherall was not in the Australian Army.  Northern Ireland?   Make up your own minds about this one.

US Legion of Merit (4th Degree,Legionnaire).  Fact.   First US decoration to be awarded to citizens of other countries.

US Bronze Star with “V” for Valour device.  Fact.  Was awarded to US and non-US personnel.

US Purple Heart with nothing to indicate subsequent woundings.  Fact.  Awarded to US and non-US personnel.

US National Defense Medal.  Fact.  Awarded to US Military personnel only, for service during a time of war or conflict.

Vietnam Service Medal.  Fact.  Awarded to US Military personnel only, for participating in, or in direct support of, Military operations between 3 July 65 and 28 March 73.

Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry with Palm.  Fact.  Also known as the Gallantry Cross. Awarded to US and non-US personnel.

Vietnamese Campaign Medal (US issue) with nothing to indicate three tours.  Fact.  This style of medal only awarded to US personnel and some Australian troops who served prior to 1965.

Order of the Sphinx.  Fact.  The Order of the Sphinx which is the Inter-allied Distinguished Service Cross awarded to US personnel, usually CIA, for serving the Allied cause for freedom behind enemy lines. Oh, dear me..

Also a yet unidentified medal with a knights helmet in the centre which doesn’t appear to be a Frontiersmen award or anything else, mere fluff and not worth the time or trouble to pursue the supposed meaning of.

He has been sighted wearing “SAS Wings” as well. Whether this was para wings or the winged dagger is yet to be confirmed. 

 

Weatherall’s incorrect use of Military terminology and his feeble attempt at citation writing would indicate that he has never dragged on a boot in the service of any country.   We daresay he never even buckled up a Boy Scout’s belt as did a previous Frontiersman, Lord Baden-Powell, the hero of Mafeking and founder of the Scouting movement.

We have sufficient recorded and reported evidence to confirm that Weatherall is a Military wannabe who has used his claims of valorous service and forged documents to enhance his status worldwide for either personal or monetary gain.

Anyone who may be so inclined should check the rest of the information provided in his radio station bio as well as it is not uncommon for immigrants to re-invent their previous lives and qualifications. We have uncovered one aspect of his written history as being false. Is there more?

Weatherall radio station bio here.

There is a certain FBI Agent by the name of Thomas A. Cottone Jnr who may be very interested in Mr. Weatherall.

Here’s part of an article written after Mr Cottone’s latest bust.

News stories about Cottone’s work and that of Mitchell Paige, a former Leatherneck who chased Medal of Honor fakers for four decades until his death this year, have motivated legions of veterans and service members to review the heroism claims of hundreds of civilians, soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines.
[Cut and paste this link below in another browser or it will take you away from the site]
 http://home.hamptonroads.com/stories/story.cfm?story=73770&ran=210436

LTGEN Weatherall’s claims to glory and the decorations he wears are hopefully something that Agent Cottone will take into consideration. Others have duly noted these and have acted accordingly.

With effect 17 July 2004, Weatherall and his Chief of Staff have nothing more to do with the International Overseas Command of the Legion of Frontiersmen.   As of Sunday 15 August 04 the Frontiersmen website was again available for public view and we see that there is a new Lieutenant General at the helm. Actually he’s a previous Commandant General who has returned to the fore, Weatherall was his Chief of Staff in 2002-03.

Now we’d like to perhaps re-acquaint you with another fraud who appeared in our Cases file some time ago.

He is William “Tony” Ponting who is also a member of the Legion of Frontiersmen, albeit an Australian connection called, “The British Gunner’s Association of Australia”.   Have a look at William “Tony” Ponting’s entry on the Cases page and especially read the British Naval and Military Research information by clicking on the hyperlink.

“Captain Tony’s”  Legion post nominals are MC, VMSM  (RHA Rtd) KGOT (Scot) GCdO, LCM, AMM, PNR, LESM.

He wears the following awards, Military Cross, Mentioned in Despatches (2), US Purple Heart and others when in actual fact he is only entitled to the General Service Medal with clasp Palestine which he earned as a Lance Bombardier (Artillery) enlisting after WW11.

Meet the good Captain Ponting by returning to our cases main page here.