Wwii Heroes Lose Medals In Scam -- Suspect Charged After Cache Found

He seemed like such a nice young man, this tall, sandy-haired fellow who came to see retired Adm. Maurice Rindskopf's awards.

The young man talked about his family ties to West Point and the book he was writing about the Navy Cross medal. And he was so grateful when Rindskopf let him borrow a ceremonial sword and epaulets that he insisted on doing a favor: He would clean Rindskopf's medals and return them in a new frame.

Two months later, Rindskopf got his frame. But inside were a bunch of fakes. His military decorations, including the prestigious Navy Cross, were gone.

"This submarine pin is a $5 pin you can buy in many stores. My pin was 10 carat gold," said Rindskopf, 78, of Severna Park, Md.

The Anne Arundel County (Md.) state's attorney yesterday charged Stephen Pyne with three counts of theft for allegedly stealing medals from Rindskopf and two other World War II heroes. Pyne, of Westminster, Md., is expected to turn himself in to police tomorrow, authorities said.

Pyne, 35, could not be reached for comment. Carroll County officials said he resigned yesterday from his job as a county budget analyst. A telephone-company recording at his home said the line had been disconnected.

Raid turns up cache

A raid on Pyne's home turned up ribbons, swords, epaulets and medals including Purple Hearts, Distinguished Flying Crosses, Navy Crosses and Medals of Honor, the nation's highest military award, prosecutors say.

"There may be people out there who don't know that they have lost their medals," prosecutor Frank Weathersbee said.

He said the investigation has been turned over to the U.S. attorney's office, which is probing thefts from at least a dozen veterans in Maryland, Virginia, the District of Columbia, New Jersey and Texas.

While prosecutors don't know the value of the items seized from Pyne's house, investigator David Cordle said he believes Pyne already has sold about $25,000 worth of military decorations.

The investigation shines a light on the obscure world of medal collecting, in which some military honors can fetch several thousand dollars at auction.

While it is illegal to sell a Medal of Honor, the decorations have been spotted on the black market at prices from $4,000 to $25,000, depending on the history behind them, according to Edward Murphy, president of the Medal of Honor Historical Society.

Rindskopf said that Pyne contacted him in March. Rindskopf, the youngest commander of a fleet submarine during World War II, had won the award after sinking four Japanese ships in a single patrol. He said he had no reason to distrust Pyne.

"I felt like a fool"

"He approached me in his very sincere way," Rindskopf said. "I just couldn't believe I was that gullible. I felt like a fool."

He said he didn't start to suspect Pyne until a few weeks after he gave him his medals. After hearing about similar decorations for sale at a Houston auction, Rindskopf demanded Pyne return his medals. What he got, he said, were "obvious" phonies.

"I can't understand why someone else didn't come along before me and blow the whistle," he said.

Others believed scammed by Pyne include another Medal of Honor recipient, Adm. Eugene Fluckey, of Annapolis, Md., who also won the Navy Cross four times, and Capt. Joseph Taussig, of Annapolis, who said the man took his Navy Cross and Purple Heart, which he won for service at Pearl Harbor.

Also stolen were Taussig's father's awards, including a Navy Cross and Distinguished Service Medal dating to the Spanish-American War.

Information from Associated Press is included in this story.