Disgruntled group protests plea agreement in case of ‘Stolen Valor’

MT. PLEASANT — A small group gathered outside Henry County Courthouse on the morning of Monday, June 5, to express their frustrations and raise awareness concerning an anticipated guilty plea bargain to be accepted by the county attorney in a case of Stolen Valor later that afternoon.

In July 2022, Henry County Sheriff’s Office issued a warrant for the arrest of Christopher Williams, 47, of Oxford Junction, for Fraudulent Practice in the Second Degree for impersonating a veteran and accepting donations from a benefit organized by Help to Our Vets.

Help to Our Vets is a nonprofit organization in Mt. Pleasant which raises money to help local veterans in need. Some of those that associated with the organization stood outside the courthouse.

“Well, this fella [Williams] has been hanging around the veterans for years,” Help to Our Vets Gary Ruth said. “He played the part. He wore a vest that said he was a vet and everything. Then he popped up and said he found out he had cancer, so he asked us if we would do a benefit for him."

"We did a benefit for him and raised $5,000,” Ruth said. “After he got the money, a couple of months later, he took off to Texas. His aunt and uncle called me and told me he's never been a veteran and he's never had cancer."

“Our great county attorney wants to do a plea bargain with him so he gets five years probation,” Ruth said with dissatisfaction. “If they found him guilty in a jury trial, he could get up to 10 years and massive fines. A slap on the wrist is what I call the five-year probation."

According to Feld Law Firm in Des Moines:

“Fraudulent practice in the second degree is when the amount of money or value of property or services involved exceeds $1,500 but does not exceed $10,000. This is a class D felony that is punishable by up to five years in prison and a $10,245 fine along with a 15% surcharge and $100 court costs. Additionally, one can be charged with fraudulent practices in the second degree if they are convicted of any level of fraudulent practice and have previously been twice convicted of fraudulent practices.”

“We expect the person to plead guilty to the charge that was actually launched against him,” Henry County Attorney Receptionist Cara Ferguson said. “If it doesn't go that way today, then we are prepared for trial tomorrow.”

According to a Written Waiver of Rights and Plea of Guilty document filed May 23, Williams initialed that the following statement is true:

“On September 26, 2020, in Henry County, Iowa, for the purpose of soliciting contributions I falsely represented to be a veteran of the United States Armed Forces and fraudulently received contributions exceeding $1,500 but less than $10,000.”

In this document, Williams agrees to plead guilty to the full charge of Fraudulent Practice in the Second Degree, a class D felony.

The agreement outlines that William will pay $4,750 of restitution to Help to Our Vets along with $1,265 in fines, surcharges, court cots, and attorney fees.

Additionally, the guilty plea agreement states that Williams will serve five years of a suspended prison sentence.

According to the initial criminal complaint, Williams alleged to Help to Our Vets that he was a veteran, and the organization help a charitable motorcycle ride on his behalf on September 26, 2020 for accruing medical bills.

“Chris was given approximately $4,700 after the motorcycle ride on September 26th,” Officer Richard Stallman stated in the complaint.

“On May 2nd, 2022, the director of Thanks is Not Enough, another organization that offers services and assistance to veterans, contacted the Henry County Sheriff's Office about possible fraud,” Stallman also wrote. “It was reported Chris was asking for services from Thanks is Not Enough. When Chris was asked for verification of his military service, Chris could not provide it. This brought Chris veteran status into question and an investigation was started.”

This initial complaint entered the court system July 2022.

Through the investigation, Stallman spoke with Williams’ family who stated that they did not know of Williams ever serving in the military, however, Williams maintained during the initial investigation that he had.

“I interviewed Chris over the phone, Chris stated he was in the military. Chris stated he would supply me with a copy of his discharge paperwork,” Stallman stated. “The only paperwork I received from Chris, through email, was unreadable. I spoke with the Director of Henry County Veterans Affairs. The Director was unable to locate any records of service for Chris. I also spoke with a local military recruiter who was also unable to verify Chris's military service.”

The initial hearing for the plea agreement was set for Monday, June 5 at 1:45 p.m. The Southeast Iowa Union will provide updates as they become available.

Contributions were made to this story by Andy Krutsinger of the Southeast Iowa Union.

Comments: AnnaMarie.Ward@southeastiowaunion.com