California man pleads guilty to posing as Navy officer, raising money he spent on himself

Calif. man pleads guilty to posing as Navy officer

LOS ANGELES — A California man who posed as a military officer and sought donations that he claimed would help wounded veterans pleaded guilty Monday to federal fraud charges in the scam, federal prosecutors said.

James Kent Barbee, 60, of Pacific Grove pleaded guilty to a felony count of mail fraud and a misdemeanor count of wearing a military uniform unlawfully, U.S. attorney’s office spokesman Thom Mrozek said.

Barbee admitted that he set up the Liberty Spirit Farm Foundation in Missouri and later moved it to the Santa Ynez Valley in California, Mrozek said.

Barbee used the foundation to solicit donations on the pretense that the money would help veterans who suffered from combat-related maladies, such as post-traumatic stress syndrome. Instead, Barbee used significant amounts of the money for personal expenses.

Barbee claimed that his foundation was affiliated with Vandenberg Air Force Base, and he claimed to be an active duty commander in the United States Navy, prosecutors said.

Barbee also maintained a page on the social networking site MySpace in which he falsely claimed to be a Navy commander and a military physician, Mrozek said. He also maintained a Web site that urged potential contributors to make donations for veterans, asking questions such as: “How much is a wounded soldier worth in dollars and cents?”

Barbee collected more than $94,000 from donors in Missouri and Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties from October 2006 through December 2007, prosecutors said.

Barbee faces a maximum sentence of 20½ years in federal prison. He’s scheduled to sentenced on Oct. 18.