A Phony Soldier?

Let's be quite clear here, there is a man named Willie Hayes who served honorably in Vietnam, earned several medals there and completely deserved his interment in the Calverton National Cemetery on October 5th. He deserved the military funeral he received and deserves the thanks of the country he served. The problem here is that another Willie Hayes was buried in the cemetery in 2003. One who was using the same Social Security number and the same honorable discharge certificate. And nobody knows who that man really is.

GARDEN CITY, N.Y. - Willie Hayes was a Vietnam veteran who proudly served his country, won several medals and earned himself a plot at a veterans' cemetery upon his death two weeks ago. But there was one problem: As far as the U.S. government was concerned, it buried Willie Hayes nearly four years ago.

An apparently homeless man who went by the name Willie Hayes and had the same Social Security number, military record and date of birth was laid to rest at the cemetery in 2003.

The family of the recently deceased Hayes was stunned to find out about the apparent impostor, and cemetery officials are asking some perplexing questions, among them: Did the man in the grave steal Willie Hayes' identity? Was it a clerical error? Was his name even Willie Hayes?

"If he didn't serve in the Army, he shouldn't be there. It's not fair to the veterans. He stole my brother's identity," said Hayes' brother, Sylvester.

This much is certain: The Willie Hayes who died two weeks ago at 59 served in the Army in Vietnam, earned several medals and worked at a printing business. His family provided cemetery officials with overwhelming documentation of his military service and identity that show he is the rightful owner of a plot at Calverton National Cemetery.

But virtually nothing is known about the other Willie Hayes.

He was buried on Christmas Eve 2003 in the Long Island cemetery, two months after dying in a Bronx nursing home. No one came forward to claim his body, and the nursing home staff believed he was homeless. A spokesman for the center did not return a call for comment.

There appear to be no relatives to interview and precious few clues about his past. If it is determined that the man was an impostor, his body will probably have to be exhumed and put in a pauper's grave in New York City.

The family of Willie Hayes - the one buried on October 5th - presented overwhelming proof of his identity. There is no doubt who that man is. There is no clue how the other man came to possess Hayes' identity. The cemetery has removed the grave marker for the apparent impostor and replaced it with a plain green marker as a placeholder. They are trying to figure out who the first man is, but it seems very unlikely that they will be able to at this late date. But unless some proof is presented that the man is entitled to be in the cemetery is produced, he does not belong in the hallowed ground of Calverton National Cemetery.