Connecticut man who fought in Ukraine lied about being US war hero

A Connecticut man fighting for Ukraine on the frontlines has lied for decades about being a US war hero — even to his once-loyal wife, who confirmed to The Post on Monday that she has dumped him.

James Vasquez, 48, became one of the most high-profile Americans to race to help after the Russian invasion, sharing dramatic images from the frontlines — and even sparking diplomatic controversy by claiming to have access to US weapons.

He repeatedly claimed to be a decorated US Army sergeant heroically sharing his priceless skillset from tours of Iraq and Afghanistan.

“I was in Kuwait during Desert Storm, and I was in Iraq after 9/11 … This is a whole different animal,” Vasquez bragged in one online interview pleading for funds to help his Ukraine war efforts.

However, the Norwalk-based home-improvement contractor has since admitted to The New York Times that he’d misrepresented his military record for decades — and was kicked out of the Army Reserves before ever going to war.

The Pentagon confirmed that he’d never been deployed, and had only been a private first class — one of the Army’s lowest ranks — rather than a battle-tested sergeant.

“I had to tell a million lies to get ahead,” Mr. Vasquez told the outlet while refusing to elaborate on why he’d been kicked out of the military, where he specialized in fuel and electrical repairs rather than combat.

“I didn’t realize it was going to come to this,” he said of the exposé.

His confession was an even bigger shock to his now-ex-wife Tina Vasquez, who had proudly told The Post when her husband first flew to Ukraine that war was “in his DNA.”

“He did the same thing after 9/11, rushed in to help. That’s just who he is — he’s my hero,” she gushed at the time.

On Monday, she told The Post that she “was just as shocked as anybody else” to see her now-ex’s confessional.

“It was just devastating to me. He fooled everybody,” she said.

“I believed him. The war stories that had supposedly happened bought tears to his eyes. I felt terrible for what [he said] he had to go through and endure — and then come to find out it was all just a lie,” she said.

“Here I am, I’m with him for 11 years and I don’t even know the man I married.

“You think you know somebody and it just blows up in your face,” she said, saying it all “seems like a dream.”

She filed for divorce over “other personal reasons” last July when Vasquez announced he was heading back to Ukraine for a second time after a few months back in the US. The divorce is now finalized.

The Post could not immediately contact Vasquez, who has since deactivated the Twitter account he used to share his now-questionable tales of conflict alongside Ukraine’s far-right Da Vinci’s Wolves battalion.

“He’s a ghost now — nobody knows where he is,” his ex-wife said, saying that former friends have also been unable to get through to him but believe he is now back in the US.

“He needs help and I hope he gets the help that he needs. I pray for him every day,” she said.

Vasquez had confessed to the Times as part of a larger exposé of Americans aiding Ukraine’s war efforts despite problematic pasts.

They included a retired Marine lieutenant colonel who is the focus of a federal investigation into the potentially illegal export of military technology, as well as a former Army soldier who defected to Russia.

The Times also detailed how Vasquez had helped a volunteer group called Ripley’s Heroes raise more than $1 million to buy war munitions.

Founder Hunter “Rip” Rawlings IV confirmed that figure to the Kyiv Post on Sunday, while attacking “Twitter smears and lies” and “accusations” for hampering its efforts.

His group also defended its “friend,” Vasquez, writing: “We wish him well, and very much pray that he will work on his personal well-being.”

Vasquez was also backed by MSNBC commentator Malcolm Nance, who has worked widely with Legion members fighting in Ukraine.

“James [Vasquez] was NOT fake, he was troubled,” Nance tweeted supportively.

“He did a lot for Ukraine but has challenges to face. Respect what he did do,” he wrote.

“He is a soldier in need of care on several levels. That is all. Let him get to it,” Nance said.