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America's Got Talent Military Vet's Tale 'Not True' According to Source

By Michael Sheridan, NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Credit: NBC

Timothy Michael Poe amazed the judges with his powerful voice, and inspired them with his heart-wrenching story about being injured in Afghanistan in 2009. However, military officials say they have no record he was ever wounded.

June 6, 2012 Updated Jun 6, 2012 at 11:11 AM PDT

A country crooner who dazzled the judges on “America’s Got Talent” Tuesday night may have been singing with a forked tongue.

Sgt. Timothy Michael Poe delivered his inspiring tale during the second night of auditions in Austin, and told the audience how he was hit by a grenade while serving in Afghanistan in 2009. However, the 35-year-old Texas man’s heroic tale doesn’t appear to be true, according to Minnesota Army National Guard records.

“We looked very closely at his record,” said Lt. Col. Kevin Olson, a spokesman for the Minnesota National Guard. “We did not find something to substantiate what he said.”

Poe claimed he suffered a broken back and a brain injury, which left him with a significant stutter. “I had volunteered for a team to go out and clear buildings and help out with the wounded,” Poe said on the talent show.

“There was a guy who come up with a rocket-propelled grenade,” he said. “I saw it coming down, and by the time I turned and went to jump on top of my guys, I yelled ‘grenade’ and the blast had hit me.” Poe claimed a therapist told him that singing could help his speech problem.

He then belted out a touching rendition of the Garth Brooks tune, “If Tomorrow Never Comes.”

There wasn’t a dry eye in the house, and Poe received a standing ovation and three “yes” votes from judges Howard Stern, Sharon Osbourne and Howie Mandel.

Yet, military officials could not find anything to suggest his tragic tale was real.

Poe served from December 2002 through May 2011, working as a supply specialist, records indicated. He was deployed in Kosovo from Oct. 10, 2007 to July 15, 2008, and then served in Afghanistan for about a month in 2009.

An NBC spokeswoman said the network and Poe had no comment. but that didn't stop Stern from discussing it on his SiriusXM satellite radio show.

“You could be the most f***ed up liar on the planet, but you never lie about your military service," he said, angrily. "This lie is so wrong on so many levels...This really sickens me."

Stern noted that he nearly cried because of Poe's story. "I thought I was about to lose it and cry for the guy," he said. "That’s how upset I was for him.”

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