A former north-east soldier who volunteered to fight Isis is preparing to launch a civil lawsuit after fraud allegations that hung over his head for more than three years were dropped on the day of the trial.
Alan Duncan, who lives in the Elgin area, was accused of faking PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) to claim £15,000 from the Veterans UK pensions pot.
However, the allegations were thrown out at Elgin Sheriff Court last week due to a lack of evidence, despite years of preparations.
The 53-year-old had his Moray home ransacked by the Ministry of Defence in a surprise raid as they searched for clues to disprove his diagnosis.
Now Mr Duncan has accused prosecutors of pursuing a “malicious” complaint against him while saying he proved his innocence just days after his initial arrest.
He said: “I was 100% innocent all along. How it got as far as it did, nobody knows.
“On the day of my arrest I phoned the Veterans Association and they sent out a doctor, who did a medical review that came back confirming PTSD as per my initial award, they even paid out an additional £6,200 to me.
“I feel like I’ve been treated worse than Isis for the last three years. It’s been hell for me and my family to have this hanging over us.”
Mr Duncan volunteered to join the fight against ISIS more than five years ago after being moved to tears at the sight of refugees left homeless in Syria and Iraq.
During his time fighting alongside the Peshmerga he helped liberate towns and villages held by Daesh as well as freeing a sex slave from captivity.
Now the veteran, who served his country in the Gulf War and Northern Ireland, is working on a documentary to shine a light on Isis crimes – including securing an interview with the husband of UK-born Shamima Begum who joined the terrorist group when she was 15.
Mr Duncan added: “The camera is now the best weapon to fight ISIS with, giving a voice to their victims is more important.
“Because of the way I have been doing it over the last few years they kind of open up more to me, I’ve been getting a lot more into the mentality of what’s happened.
“I’ve lost friends to Isis, people need to see the mentality of them. These people must stand trial in Syria, they must stand trial in front of their victims.”
The Crown Office has confirmed that the case against Mr Duncan was dropped ahead of the trial.
A spokeswoman said: “The Procurator Fiscal received a report relating to a 50-year-old male and incidents said to have occurred between August 2007 and September 2013.
“The Crown has a duty to keep cases under review and after full and careful consideration of the facts and circumstances of the case, including information produced to the Crown shortly before the trial was due to begin, the Procurator Fiscal concluded there should be no further proceedings.”
A Ministry of Defence spokeswoman said: “We are aware of the court’s decision. We do not comment on individual cases.”