THE case of Arthur Rex Crane has exposed a disturbing trend of people pretending to be veterans, according to a group which investigates and exposes military imposters.Crane is alleged to have posed as an ex-prisoner of war for more than 20 years, collecting the highest level of pension, medical and travel benefits and even working his way up the ranks to become the president of the Federal ex-POW Association.His fraudulent scheme was revealed at the weekend. But he is not alone.The Australian and New Zealand Military Imposters is made up of ex-regular army Vietnam veterans, each with more than 20 years regular army service.They are dedicated to outing fraudsters and bogus veterans and are currently investigating hundreds of similar cases.ANZMI spokesman Rodney said this latest case should be seen as a warning to others out there living a lie."What this current peanut has done is absolutely disgraceful," he said."He is walking in the blood of every prisoner of war alive and dead."Rodney applauded the actions of the Veterans Affairs Minster Allan Griffin for "publicly decrying" Mr Crane.He said there were too many people getting away with defrauding the system."The ANZMI exists to publicly name, shame and humiliate bogus veterans," he said."In the main we target bogus Vietnam veterans, however these creatures are represented in every war we've been involved in."We are now facing reports of bogus veterans from Timor, Rwanda, Somalia, Afghanistan, Iraqi and the Solomons."Bogus veterans have the opportunity to accrue hundreds of thousands of dollars in pensions, medical fees, travel allowances.Punishment for those caught out can include jail time, fines, and being forced to repay the money taken fraudulently.However, Rodney said if caught, bogus veterans should be given a taste of their own medicine."Prison is the obvious punishment, however should the courts still want to be lenient and not imprison these people there are other options," he said."In the US people can get community service in a veterans mental institution where for 100 or so hours they are made to bathe, toilet, feed, write letters and keep company mentally affected veterans."Therefore they can sit and watch the affects of war on something they never had the guts to do themselves and possibly be taught the greatest lesson in life."For more information on the ANZMI visit www.anzmi.net