Man Uses Vet Tale to Bilk Bikers

If you've been to an event with bikers in Central Florida, chances are you've seen me there. I usually have a camera rolling instead of being in pictures. (I'm the one with the Dunkin Donuts cup. As you can see I have a face for radio) Can't remember how many videos I've done during these events. If you read this blog then you know my husband is a Nam Knight, so rest assured I know these men and women.

You may cringe when you see a pack of bikers coming up in your rearview mirror as the distinctive sound of a Harley fills the air. You see the leather vests and patches. What you don't see is where they are going. Usually they are heading out for a fundraiser to help someone in need. They have huge hearts, tugged by kids in need but devoted to our veterans. Some bikers are not veterans but love them. Most are veterans and I've never met a more generous bunch of people in my life. There is always a ride for some charity right here in Central Florida.

Just to give you an idea about how generous they are, last year the Nam Knights had a fundraiser for Homes For Our Troops. Tickets were $100 for a couple and they sold out. What was amazing is, Homes For Our Troops ended up with a check from the Orlando Nam Knights for $15,000! Millions of dollars are donated by bikers every year but you never read about any of it in your local paper. Last month, Bikers for Child Abuse had a ride with over 800! It was so huge parts of I-4 were shut down.

All of this makes what I read in the following cause a great deal of heartache. I know they are generous but what matters more is that when they give, they don't just pull out a wad of cash. Their hearts are connected to every dollar they give.

Damned Lies - Man Uses Vet Tale to Bilk Bikers
Friday, February 10, 2012
Bryan Harley
Cruiser Editor

How many of us out there have either met this guy or seen him at rallies? Turns out, the man who has been passing himself as Robert Harris is really an international criminal called Eugene Paull, according to a story by the Tampa Bay Times. Worse yet, he's been passing himself off as a vet on a mission to raise money for homeless vets but apparently has been pocketing the money himself.

I’ve been bilked. Bamboozled. Hoodwinked. Had the proverbial wool pulled over my eyes. Worst part is, a lot of you out there did too. This joker fooled a lot of us. My eyes almost popped out of my head when I read this story on the Tampa Bay Times website. It’s a tale of deceit, SWAT raids, shotguns and machine guns and underground tunnels. But let’s rewind a bit before we press forward.

A few years back, met this crazy character in Daytona Beach at the Harley-Davidson Ride-In Bike Show. Dude claimed to be a vet, rode the wildest 1985 FXST decked out with rockets, machine guns, bandoliers of bullets, gas masks, and tons of other military-themed paraphernalia. He called it the “Vietnam Vets Tribute Bike” and called himself Sky Soldier. He then spun a convincing tale of how he was embarking on a cross-country trip, “Operation: Dust Off” to raise money for homeless and disabled veterans. He went on to say how he was going to carry American flags with him on the journey to be signed by dignitaries along the way which were ultimately going to be placed at the Vietnam Memorial Wall in D.C. on Memorial Day. Great story, huh? Easy to buy into, a vet and fellow biker helping out vets. Wanting to help the guy out, I wrote a little story about it. (Veteran Tribute Bike Embarks on Vet Fundraiser)

Turns out, if the allegations in the Tampa Bay Times story are true, it was all a lie. This guy is a complete con artist. Apparently, the guy who rode around rallies on his rocket-launching motorcycle shouting “Look at me, look at me” who we knew as Robert Harris, aka “Sky Soldier,” is really an international criminal named Eugene Paull who's been living under a false identity for the last 33 years. Stole a dead person’s name. According to the story, he’s suspected of racking up a small fortune back in the day trafficking drugs in Jamaica. Yeh, mon! He’s even had him a little long-time, live-in Jamaican girlfriend he snuck into the country illegally.
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