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He Stole Another Man’s Name to Rejoin the Army. He Got Caught Decades Later.


Joel Sanders served in the United States Army from 1985 to 1988. Originally from St. Louis, Mr. Sanders was stationed in Berlin, and after his discharge, he stayed in Germany and made a living on his own, had six children and founded a security business.

There’s just one problem: He’s not really Joel Sanders.

In June 2018, the man of St. Louis, whom he named, was denied health insurance because records indicated he had veteran status. He was advised to seek care through the Department of Veterans Affairs.

He informed the department’s police that his identity had been misused, setting off a chain of events that unleashed a decades-long hoax. Its origins also come to light: the desperation of a young black man trying to flee the violence of his Midwestern homeland.

On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Sarah E. Pitlyk of the Eastern District of Missouri sentenced DeLeo Barner, now 60, to 100 hours of community service and one week of service time for passport fraud. discovered during the investigation of the case, which first reported by The Kansas City Star. As part of the plea agreement, federal prosecutors dropped the more serious charge of identity theft.

According to court documents, Mr. Barner first joined the army in 1981, after graduating from high school, “to escape the violence raging in St. Louis.” That period was marked by both mob violence and, especially in the Negro neighborhoods, the police opened fire.

After three years of service, while he was stationed in Korea, he was discharged for “lack of readiness warning”, which prevented him from re-enlisting. The documents say Mr. Barner returned with “a St. Louis is even worse than where he left off.” Within three weeks of returning home, two of his friends were killed by gun violence. “In desperation, he spoke to a military recruiter about how soon he might re-enlist,” Barner’s attorney, Melissa K. Goymerac, wrote in a memo. .

Ms. Goymerac wrote that his recruiter advised him it would take at least two years to reapply, but “there may be another way to get back with someone else’s information.”

And he did, swearing “this time it will be different.”

Mr. Barner enlisted as Joel Sanders, and received several medals for his service, including one for good conduct, according to court documents. Court documents show he was discharged in 1988 after a “failed” surgery.

Credit…United States Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Missouri

Mr. Barner, who went on to live as Joel Sanders, continued to use his military experience to start a security business in Germany. Four of his six children still live in Berlin, none of whom bear his real name. Ms. Goymerac said Mr. Barner did not go to war during either time in the military.

“The mid-’80s were a tough time to be a black man in the military,” Goymerac said. “After being fired, he tried to re-enlist normally but was told that it could take years.”

After Mr. Sanders actually alerted Veterans Affairs police about the misuse of his identity, the inspector general and the State Department determined that an “imposter” had used his identity. him to obtain his passport and make several renewals between 1988 and 2018 In 2019, Mr. Barner was interviewed by German Foreign Ministry employees. He initially identified himself as Joel Sanders and presented his fake passport.

But when confronted, Mr. Barner explained that he obtained Mr. Sanders’s identity from City Hall in St. Louis to join the Army, under a plea agreement. He also admitted to receiving $70,000 in Veterans Affairs benefits. It is not clear how Mr. Barner chose Mr. Sanders’ name and could not be reached for comment.

Mr. Barner was indicted in March 2020 and surrendered at Berlin airport on August 27, 2021. Agents from the US Marshals Service escorted him to St. Louis, where he spent about a week in prison, according to the Justice Department. Mr. Barner pleaded guilty in May to perjury on a passport application.

“DeLeo Barner did the wrong thing for the right reasons, and paid dearly for his actions even before sentencing in this case,” Ms. Goymerac wrote in the memo. “Mr. Barner lives with the weight of his poor decision almost 40 years ago every day. He deeply regrets his actions and wants to do whatever he can to make amends.”



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