In Veritas' Shadow - Truths Behind Kia-MIA-POWs in Special Operations (Hardcover)

Veritas means truth in Latin. In Veritas Shadow is a memoir that reveals deceit and deception within U.S. Special Forces military operations. It is based on the experiences of Green Beret Stan Bowen, who served two tours of duty in Viet Nam between 1966-1968. The action takes place primarily during his tours in Viet Nam, but the story spans the years 1968-2002. In 1967, Sgt. Bowen was asked to investigate apparent corruption and a murder at Plei Me. His work led to the discovery of the second highest ranking enemy agent in the Viet Nam war: a North Vietnamese general working as a South Vietnamese lieutenant on an American Special Forces site in the central highlands. These highlands were the nerve center for the North Vietnamese Armys infiltration and supply routes. To Sgt. Bowens surprise, the discovery of this enemy agent did not result in the enemys termination but in his promotion to the Operations Center at Kontum. It also coincided with the onset of attacks aimed at quieting Sgt. Bowen. Disturbingly, those attacks came from both Vietnamese and Americans sources. Sgt. Bowens story explains why so many of the Special Forces troops became statistics: KIA, MIA and POW. Military operations were being compromised: in this book, we learn how a high-level mole was allowed to continue feeding information to the North Vietnamese, but we are left with the question of why. Why were U.S. secret organizations enabling the North Vietnamese to eradicate American operations? It also documents the psychological awakening of a soldier who entered and re-entered Viet Nam with a passion for truth and freedom and left Viet Nam full of questions about the motivations of those in power.