Fake war hero who lied about service still in Ukraine to ‘eliminate invaders’

A fake war hero who lied about active service in the Middle East before jetting off to Ukraine, duping even his own wife, is still working to "eliminate invaders".

James Vasquez, who went to fight in Ukraine at the start of the war, admitted that he was kicked out of the US Army Reserves before going to war – and he even lied to his now ex-wife Tina about his service.

Vasquez, 48, became one of the most high-profile former soldiers to volunteer in the Ukrainian Army.

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He built up a large following after sharing dramatic images from the front lines and even caused an international stir after claiming to have access to US weapons.

He repeatedly claimed to be a decorated US Army sergeant and said he had served multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan but was rumbled in an embarrassing social media sting before admitting that he lied.

However, despite being found out for stolen valour and being exposed as a rookie whilst fighting in Ukraine, he remains there and still spouts war rhetoric on his Facebook page.

"Due to an unrestrained Russian terrorist state, Ukraine is the most mined country on earth. Getting mine detectors to units in need is our top priority right now," he wrote yesterday (Tuesday, May 9).

That post on Facebook came just days after he spoke about "eliminating invaders" and shared videos from the hellscape that is Bakhmut, in the east of Ukraine.

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"In two days, this drone squad will be in Ukraine to help eliminate invaders," he wrote alongside an image of six non-weapon drones.

In late April he shared a video and posted about feeling "on the edge of life and death".

Vasquez wrote: "The road to Bakhmut is scary. Every day on the edge of life and death.

"This time, we got lucky and the shell landed a few meters away, but we definitely felt it."

Vasquez stayed on the Ukrainian fronlines despite being outed as a fraud. He originally arrived in Ukraine in early April last year before returning again recently, effectively live-tweeting the conflict on his personal account.

He deleted his Twitter account after speculation that he wasn't officially signed up to fight in Ukraine, or was never a soldier.

He later admitted to the New York Times that he was in fact kicked out of the Army Reserves before ever went to war.

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