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Fake Belt Masterthread

5 year(s) ago • 9398 views • 165 replies

Adam Laclair
Adam Laclair
Black belt 1st degreeVerified126 forum posts2690/1000
1 month(s) ago
So we had a recent request for verification by Lonnie Phillips III. Claimed he got his black belt under Joe Moreira in 2001, but had a certificate photo that was called out by Mike Desrosier aka "Honey Badger" for looking doctored. Specifically with white areas on the certificate around the name, rank, and date.

I posted that I had reached out to Joe Moreira for verification. Upon hearing that, Lonnie apparently deleted the entire thread. Joe replied to me that he does not remember him.

BELT CHECK: Failed!!
Justin Ungar
Justin Ungar
Black beltVerified268 forum posts4385/1000
1 month(s) ago
So we had a recent request for verification by Lonnie Phillips III. Claimed he got his black belt under Joe Moreira in 2001, but had a certificate photo that was called out by Mike Desrosier aka "Honey Badger" for looking doctored. Specifically with white areas on the certificate around the name, rank, and date. I posted that I had reached out to Joe Moreira for verification. Upon hearing that, Lonnie apparently deleted the entire thread. Joe replied to me that he does not remember him. BELT CHECK: Failed!!
Thank you for your follow through on this Adam!
I love that we could go through that as a community without any personal attacks or disrespectful actions.
Adam Laclair
Adam Laclair
Black belt 1st degreeVerified126 forum posts2690/1000
1 month(s) ago
Thank you for your follow through on this Adam! I love that we could go through that as a community without any personal attacks or disrespectful actions.
I agree!
It's great to see both the respect, and that when we follow the process, the process works - whether for affirmation or denial.
Honey Badger
Honey Badger
Black belt 3rd degreeVerified251 forum posts9745/1000
1 month(s) ago
Yea it was strange, as I'm sure he's trained as all the photos looked old and legit, things lined up but the original pic he posted in all the areas where his information would be, had white under it you could see. When i pointed it out he deleted it and told me that his original certificate had water damage, so it was a "copy" of his original. Which made zero sense to me as if he photocopied it, it would still look funky. Also, why would it look like there was a white bar under his name, date, and rank?

COULD be he just didn't want to wait anymore and just gave up......... OR knew something was weird and bailed, i have no idea.

Adam Laclair
Adam Laclair
Black belt 1st degreeVerified126 forum posts2690/1000
1 month(s) ago
My biggest question now is if he IS legit, and didn’t want to wait anymore… WHY delete the entire thread?

He also had posted photos of him training with Marco Ruas, but had no photos to show of him ever WITH Joe Moreira. I think that’s odd.

So while he might be legit, there’s so far zero evidence to prove it except a suspicious looking certificate, and a promoting teacher that doesn’t remember him at all…

I can’t help but wonder if he took a photo of Marco Ruas’ certificate (Joe DID promote him with the old style certificate that Lonnie showed) and edited that with his own name. That’s purely speculation, not an accusation, but this is the exact type of case this site is designed to be used for.
Coachpotato
Coachpotato
Black belt 1st degreeVerified776 forum posts1920/1000
1 month(s) ago
I have a 10P 1st degree certificate, but Lauri forgot to sign it. Does this mean I'm a fake 1st degree? :D Also, I haven't taped a stripe on my belt because I don't use the gi very often and I forget every time.
Isaac
Isaac
Black beltVerified169 forum posts4405/1000
1 month(s) ago
My biggest question now is if he IS legit, and didn’t want to wait anymore… WHY delete the entire thread?
Maybe he deleted his account and GDPR regulations require Beltchecker to delete all associated information including posts? That's a guess.

There's video of him doing competitions as a black belt on YouTube. And some forum discussions about him a long time ago. Would be really surprising if he faked it for decades.
Matt Guyer
Matt Guyer
Purple beltVerified1133 forum posts23230/400
1 month(s) ago
My biggest question now is if he IS legit, and didn’t want to wait anymore… WHY delete the entire thread? He also had posted photos of him training with Marco Ruas, but had no photos to show of him ever WITH Joe Moreira. I think that’s odd. So while he might be legit, there’s so far zero evidence to prove it except a suspicious looking certificate, and a promoting teacher that doesn’t remember him at all… I can’t help but wonder if he took a photo of Marco Ruas’ certificate (Joe DID promote him with the old style certificate that Lonnie showed) and edited that with his own name. That’s purely speculation, not an accusation, but this is the exact type of case this site is designed to be used for.
It is easy to do.
Jon
Jon
Black beltVerified11 forum posts2365/1000
1 month(s) ago
I messaged Lonnie and asked why he deleted the thread. He claimed Joe never responded, felt the thread was going nowhere and that he was going to delete his profile too. I told him if his black belt was legit, then his peers who were present could speak up for him. The BJJ community isn't that big.
Christian Graugart
Christian Graugart
Black belt 4th degreeVerified4321 forum posts39320/1000
1 month(s) ago
Maybe he deleted his account and GDPR regulations require Beltchecker to delete all associated information including posts? That's a guess.
Yeah deleting an account will delete everything linked to it

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