Tim Poe, a war veteran who performed “If Tomorrow Never Comes” on NBC show “America’s Got Talent” is a fraud according to Minnesota National Guard spokesman Lt. Col. Kevin Olson. “Tim Poe did not sustain any injuries while serving in Afghanistan in 2009,” Olson said.
Poe told the judges he spent 14 years in the military, and suffered a broken back and brain injury when he was hit by a grenade in Afghanistan.
“I had volunteered for a team to go out and clear buildings and help out with the wounded,” Poe said during a taped interview on the show. “There was a guy who come up with a rocket-propelled grenade. I saw it coming down, and by the time I turned and went to jump on top of my guys, I yelled ‘grenade’ and the blast had hit me.”
READ THE STATEMENT FROM THE MINNESOTA NATIONAL GUARD:
“Attributable to Lt. Col. Kevin Olson, Spokesman for the Minnesota National Guard.
Sgt. Timothy Michael Poe served in the Minnesota Army National Guard from Dec. 3, 2002 until May 26, 2011, and performed as a supply specialist.
His military records indicate that he served with the Minnesota National Guard in Kosovo from Oct. 10, 2007 until July 15, 2008, and was deployed to Afghanistan from July 28, 2009 to Aug. 30, 2009.
Sgt. Poe’s official military records do not indicate that he was injured by a grenade in combat while serving in Afghanistan in 2009, as he reports. The Minnesota National Guard can also confirm that he was not awarded the Purple Heart Medal for wounds sustained in combat.”
Poe had a stutter when he spoke with the judges but the stutter disappeared when he sang. He also didn’t appear to stutter when he spoke with the show’s host after his performance.
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