Tallahassee Man Sent to Federal Prison for Theft of Government Funds in Stolen Valor Prosecution

Tallahassee, Florida - Michel Duane Dyson, 46, of Tallahassee, Florida, who misrepresented himself as a decorated U.S. Army combat veteran to fraudulently collect Veteran’s Administration (VA) benefits, has been sentenced to a 48-month term of federal imprisonment for his misrepresentations and receipt of VA funds. Court records show that in April 2022, Dyson fraudulently applied for Veterans Affairs benefits based on his claims that he actively served in the U.S. Army, further claiming that he served in combat and had been awarded both the Purple Heart and a Bronze Star. Dyson was never an active or reserve member of any branch of the armed forces. Investigators later determined that, during part of the time Dyson claimed service in the Army, he was incarcerated in Massachusetts for a sex offense. Nonetheless, as a result of his fraudulent misrepresentations, from April 2022 until June 2025, Dyson was able to secure VA benefits in the form of medical treatment provided either through VA medical facilities or contracted medical providers. In May 2025, Dyson further attempted to fraudulently obtain additional VA housing benefits, at which point his deception was uncovered. Records in the investigation revealed that Dyson had similarly attempted to obtain VA benefits in the Boston, Massachusetts area in 2013, but had been denied. As part of the sentence, upon release from prison, Dyson will be required to serve three years on supervised release and was ordered to pay $28,118.37 in restitution to the VA.