Michigan Officers Locate and Replace Vietnam Veteran's Stolen Medals

When Officers Chaim Kozak and Rodney Donald of the Westland (MI) Police Department learned of the theft of a Vietnam War veteran's medals from a facility that cares for aging veterans, they set their minds to finding and presenting to the man replacements of the hard-earned honors.

August 27, 2019

When Officers Chaim Kozak and Rodney Donald of the Westland (MI) Police Department learned of the theft of a Vietnam War veteran's medals from a facility that cares for aging veterans, they set their minds to finding and presenting to the man replacements of the hard-earned honors.

According to HometownLife.com, Vince Berna is in failing health and residing at a facility called Veteran's Haven, where a shadow box containing his medals now is displayed on the wall of his residence.

After Officer Kozak—himself a Purple Heart Medal recipient—and his partner learned Berna's medals were stolen last autumn they worked diligently ever since to locate and order replacement medals.

Kozak and Donald used pictures, documents, and their local VFW post to confirm Berna's honors, including the Army Commendation Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal, and the National Defense Service Medal.

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