Wantirna’s Neville Donohue sentenced after claiming to hold the military rank of major general.

A FAKE war veteran has been told to stop lying and take responsibility for his actions in court.

Neville Donohue leaves the Ringwood Magistrate's Court after photos of him wearing medals on Anzac Day went viral. Picture: Jake Nowakowski.

A MAGISTRATE has slammed a “deliberately dishonest” fake war veteran for refusing to stop lying, after a marathon run of court appearances stretching back almost four years.

Neville Donohue, of Wantirna, appeared at the Ringwood Magistrates’ Court today for sentencing after he claimed he had served in operational or overseas missions and referred to himself by the rank of major general.

But Magistrate Greg McNamara said Mr Donohue had known he was lying, and had made a mockery of the importance of military service.

“The medals were a lie and yet you maintained it in court. It is completely untrue. You persist in lying about it,” he told the court.

“I am not confident by anything said by you — unless supported by others.

“The integrity of these medals has to be considered.

“The integrity of war to be respected.”

Mr Donohue plead guilty or was found guilty of 30 charges relating to deception, falsely purporting to be a returned service person, falsely purporting to be a Commonwealth official, to be wearing medals without entitlement, obtaining property by deception, using false documents, and driving while suspended.

Two psychological assessments tendered to the court found Mr Donohue, 64, had told the psychologist he had suffered post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after serving in Vietnam and had been receiving treatment for many years.

The court heard Mr Donohue had worn rows of replica service medals at a Remembrance Day service at the Clayton RSL sub-branch in 2014, and did a talk in Kalorama pretending to be a major general the year before — but he only served six years in army and never served in Vietnam.

Defence barrister Raj Bhattacharya told the court Mr Donohue was receiving a disability pensioner through Veterans Affairs for his mental illness.

But Magistrate McNamara said there was no evidence to prove he had served in Vietnam, let alone suffered PTSD.

“I accept there is something not right with Mr Donohue,” Magistrate McNamara said.

“There is no evidence Veterans Affairs diagnosed him with that (PTSD).

“No evidence from anyone who has tested him in the past or treated him.”

Magistrate McNamara said Mr Donohue had indulged in fantasies and deceptions, and was “deliberately dishonest”.

“He knows exactly what he was doing. He was perhaps expressing a delusional behaviour … but not enough to absolve of his actions,” Mr McNamara said.

He was sentenced to four months in jail for state charges relating to financial advantage, of which he has already served 30 days.

He was also given three months jail time, to be served concurrently, for other charges including impersonating a Commonwealth official, and was forced to pay about $37,000 in restitution for falsely claiming medical expenses.

The court was also told Mr Donohue has prior convictions dating back to 1998 where he was given a good behaviour bond for defrauding the Commonwealth.

Mr Donohue immediately appealed and will have to regularly attend Knox police station.