Saturday, February 20, 2010, 09:30
Roger Day, 62, posed as a retired member of the SAS, wearing 17 medals as he marched in a Poppy parade on November 11, last year.
But veterans in Bedworth became suspicious that any one individual could win so many medals and contacted the police.
In January, Mr Day, of Earl Shilton, was sentenced to 60 hours community service and ordered to pay £40 costs after he pleaded guilty to a charge of military deception. But yesterday his conviction was overturned after it emerged the act under which he was prosecuted was scrapped 11 days before the march.
Mr Day had pleaded guilty to "unlawfully using decoration" under Section (1b) the Army Act 1955. But the Act was repealed by the Armed Forces Act 2006 – just days before Day joined hundreds of war veterans on November 11 – making it obsolete.
Warwickshire Crown Prosecution Service admitted the mistake.
A spokesman said: "On January 15, the CPS was contacted by Mr Day's defence solicitors querying the original charge. In the light of this query and the subsequent review, the CPS can confirm that Mr Day should not have been charged under the Army Act 1955, as this Act had been repealed 11 days prior to the offence being committed and had been replaced by the Armed Forces Act 2006.
"As soon as this error was discovered, we contacted the court and Mr Day's defence solicitors.
"Having reviewed the file and re-applied the Code for Crown Prosecutors, a decision was made to discontinue the prosecution."
He added the decision was also made to discontinue the prosecution on the basis that there was insufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction.
Mr Day returned to Nuneaton Magistrates Court two weeks after his conviction and had the it overturned.
The CPS was ordered to pay £200 legal costs.
Yesterday, Mr Day's wife Maxine, 38, said: "We are absolutely delighted with the result. My husband said all along that he did nothing illegal.
"Morally, he might have lied but in the eyes of the law he is innocent."
Mr Day added: "I am vindicated.
"I am now considering taking legal action against all those who muddied my name."
At the court case on January 12, Mr Day admitted pretending to be a decorated war hero in order to impress Maxine after they met at an opera club in 2000.
The court heard that he "got carried away with the fantasy" to keep Maxine interested in him.
He told Maxine he lost the medals in action or sold them so she set about replacing them one by one.
