FBI Arrests Alleged Phony SF Colonel
January 25, 2011
Military.com|by Bryant Jordan
A man who claimed to be a retired Green Beret colonel and an expert in the international sex-slave trade has been arrested in Maryland by the FBI.
An FBI spokeswoman said William G. "Bill" Hillar was charged with mail fraud in connection with a scheme to use bogus military and academic credentials toward teaching and training employment.
For years Hillar allegedly scammed universities, non-profit groups and law enforcement organizations by claiming his daughter was kidnapped by human traffickers in Asia and that he spent months in a failed effort to rescue her. He parlayed his “expertise” and faux Army Special Forces career into thousands of dollars in teaching and lecture fees.
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FBI Arrests Alleged Phony SF Colonel
Point Man Ministries phony - Marion Jimmie Ballinger, passed away last month in Salem, Oregon. After serving 3 peaceful years at Fort Riley KS and Hawaii, he inflated his stories to include being a former POW, entitled to the Purple Heart, Bronze Star, CIB and other awards. All false...he is easily Googled and was outed on the Phonies web site years ago.
ReplyDeleteSo...why did Point Man Ministries honor him as a hero, not merely as a friend, during his recent services?
I checked online but found only a few reports on this man. I also asked Dana Morgan, President of Point Man Ministries about your claim that this man was honored.
ReplyDeleteThis is part of his reply.
He attended some of the local meetings in the Salem Oregon area and the leader there confronted him with the truth and also some others from his church but he has had this elaborate story for so long I don’t think he knew the truth any longer.
Mr. Anonymous can contact the Salem Outpost instead of asking you. pointmansalem@netscape.net Tom Birdsong is the contact there. After we found out that Mr. Ballinger was not what he said he was, Tom convinced him he could no longer wear our stuff or any of the medals and patches claiming all the exploits he says defined his service. We did not cut him off from our meetings.
I suggest you contact Tom as Dana suggested and find out what happened.
Chaplain, thank you for your response. I am glad that Jim continued to enjoy and be welcomed to your fellowship, and also that the issue of the medals improperly worn was addressed. As you know, the family had the vest shown at the memorial, and published his memorial including the medals. The church is in just a bit of turmoil, but most folks have been quite understanding.
ReplyDeletePart of my discomfort is that Jim invited me into Point Man Ministries, saying "men like us who've seen combat need to help the guys coming back." He really let us down.
Again, thank you for everything done before and after Mr. Ballinger's passing.