Expose of Dr. Mang Gyi

**Quikfeet509** · Posted On: 7/21/2010 9:00pm

Theoretically speaking, an in-law of mine might have lied about when they came over as a refuge from an unnamed country so that they would not be forced to retire at 65.

It's not uncommon.

**tgace** · Posted On: 7/21/2010 10:59pm

Except back in the 70's he was dating himself as being born in 1936...and now he is listed as being born in 36'. Im just sayin that he HAS to have something with his listed DOB on him by now. A drivers license or SOMETHING.

**tgace** · Posted On: 7/23/2010 5:30am

So...if any Bando practiconers are out there. I think it's safe to say that Bando is NOT "The martial art of the Gurkha" as some people tend to believe.

As far as I know, the Gurkhas don't have any formalized martial art. Bando is a Burmese art (with perhaps some Gurkha practiconers at one time) that became ASSOCIATED with the Gurkhas via Dr Gyi's influence (the ABA) and the use of the Kukri.

Correct?

**Blue Collar** · Posted On: 9/21/2010 4:57pm

Originally Posted by tgace

I can't see anybody, immigrant or not, who has been living in the US since the 60's, NOT having established some solid documentation regarding date of birth.

Many years ago, I knew some men of Arabic (Yemeni) dissent that really had no idea as to the exact date of their birth due to where/when they were born. They were born in the early part of the 20th century in a part of the world that by today's standard would be called a "tribal area" with no central system record keeping. They travelled through parts of Africa taking on jobs as laborers before coming to the US, but in order to get work they had to have some sort of documentation. They went to somebody, somewhere and had papers "fabricated." This may be the case with Gyi.

**Blue Collar** · Posted On: 9/21/2010 5:10pm

Originally Posted by Craig Jenkins

The more I read, the more I regret the challenging claims he appears to have made toward the end of his career. Here's a guy Bullshido might otherwise love - who fought full contact, eschews kata, apparently taught pretty much for free, and has a style that people seem to respect. To damage that in any way for the sake of gilding the lily ... it's just not clear why?

I'm not disputing the evidence. It's just a shame really.

I am of the opinion that if he lied about his military service, he's probably lying about other things in his life - including his martial arts. Can I prove it? No. But Gyi's silence on the matter is suspect. It may well be that he has told so many lies over the years that he can't keep track of all of them and rather than get caught in a lie, or several, he remains silent.

The shame of it is really in how he has protrayed himself over the years. Gyi may very well be a skilled martial artist and a great teacher. There is more honor in recognizing the true source of your art and skill than there is building up a false persona and mystique around one's self.

**tgace** · Posted On: 5/31/2011 2:17pm

Just doing some more "google-fu" on Gyi and some of the stories surrounding him.

http://stickgrappler.tripod.com/bando/edrawdog.html

First he started with telling us his first hand experience with the Kukri. He had his album that he shared with the seminar attendees which showed the effectiveness of the weapon. For example, he had a picture of a Japanese sniper, who he had literally sliced off the top of his head clean. And talked about the pictures he left at home with the guy split directly down the middle from his head to his testicles. That just blew me away and I knew I was in for an interesting day. Just watching his movement, even in his mid-seventies. You can just sit there and imagine. When he stroked the kukri, you got to see that that's what a lot of Japanese saw for their last time.

This was dated 2000. I wonder if the military exploit stories are still being used currently in places?

This is also not the first refrence to the Dr's "picture books" either. A source once told me that he had seen pictures from what the Dr claimed were from his experiences in Gulf War I. I'd be interested to know if anybody else has seen these sorts of photographs.

**Goldenguy** · Posted On: 5/31/2011 9:00pm

This is kind of a minor point, but I think his name is misspelt in the title of this thread. Shouldn't it be Maung not Mang?

**tgace** · Posted On: 10/18/2011 2:56pm

Hock Hochheim talks anout Gyi:

http://hockscombatforum.com/index.php?topic=8092.0

He says some interesting suff I hadn't heard before (ex. Ishhen Ryu claims).

**tgace** · Posted On: 10/18/2011 3:32pm

Received from Hock himself:

Hey Tgace..
You want to add the below to that Bullshido thread? In fact, please go ahead. I never can remember my passwords, etc for it. I think people need to know.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

W. Hock Hochheim former long-time police and military police investigator reports:

“You know, the Inosanto family (chock full of people I know and like) have long invested time in Gyi, and cannot seem to admit the truth and back track on Gyi. And, very few of them understand the military life and military history, are just martial artists and many also suffer from the "I want to believe" syndrome." Hero worship.

First off, I really don't care about Gyi. But through time I was requested by some retired military people in various groups associated with the POWNetwork to investigate martial artists who claim various, suspicious, military backgrounds. They supplied me a list of names once and Gyi's name was on a list.

In another thread on Combat centric, former Army Lt Colonel Dwight McClemore mentions Gyi training the Army once, organized by an “Ed” - that would be Dr. Ed Thomas who periodically taught the Special Forces. Ed is a SUPER nice guy. Met him, know him. Gyi lied to him, to get that short SF gig with him, at that one camp. One lie was that he (GYI) told Ed that he was a bronze medalist, Olympic boxer, as well as all the other hoopla about his outrageous and improbable military past. After the training, Ed did some checking and was really disappointed, about the boxing thing in particular which was so easy to check on! Ed told me eye-to-eye, in person, that Gyi lied to him about his past. This Thomas incident is NOT internet bullshit. That was told to me in person.

Everywhere a single firecracker has gone off since the 1940s, Gyi claims to have fought there...oh…for the UN or Marines, etc. Despite the fact that his students questioned in Ohio, during those times in the 80s and 90s cannot recall these absences. They report that during the Chuck Norris POW movies of the 1980s, Gyi suddenly started telling SOME people he had and was rescuing POWS. “Some people,” because he selectively lies to some people and not to others, who might detect the actual truth. Many followers say he “looks so young.” He has to lie about his age to do all the things he claims for all those decades.

I have personally seen Gyi's high school yearbook from Burma. His later students in the 1990s, sick of his lies, stole the book. He was in theatrics and sports in the years he claims he was a Ghurka fighting the Japanese in WW II. This yearbook is not internet bullshit. No wonder he looks so young. He's lied about his age.

Gyi first tried to insert himself into martial arts history by claiming that while he was rehabbing on Okinawa from WW II war wounds (a war he was never in) he just wandered into the birthplace school of Isshin Ryu Karate. This was quite a scam and Gyi even spoke at a huge Karate dinner about this. Soon, he claims were investigated and veteran Isshin Ryu people called Gyi a con man and a liar. This is not internet bullshit, as I have talked to several of these karate people. Gyi does not claim this anymore, hoping it buries itself away, because he was really caught red-handed in a history scam. A pattern of “history insertion” began, with the clever use of photo-copy machines (multiple copies inserted his mug and pose in poor quality reproductions) and written articles inserting himself in various, actual escapades.

In the late 1990s Gyi was claiming to teach a two-handed grip, United Nations Baton course that he “designed and taught all over the world.” (Ironically right after I started a Dos Manos-two handed grip, stick course and taught it at schools Gyi also frequented). Having created my two-handed grip, DMS course I was REALLY interested in seeing Gyi's course, seeing the United Nations manual etc. As a police officer seeking training, over a series of months I officially contacted and re-contacted various departments in the UN, some directly in charge of training programs and other remote possibilities. The end result? No one had heard of Gyi, or this program, or any program by Gyi, or Gyi in any way. I did get other programs from them (not Gyi’s), which are free to the public as they all are. This is NOT internet bullshit.

I had employed a former British Army, Ghurka commander named Gordon Corrigan, as a columnist in my old CQC Magazine. He ran several Ghurka units. I asked him to investigate Gyi and as former Ghurka commander, he could not find a single thing about him in any way. The commander said in summary, that all Gyi needed to do was submit a British Military number, a simple, important sequence of numbers and it would confirm or deny, he'd been a Ghurka or not. One of the retired military groups tried to reach Gyi to ask for it, sending Gyi a series of registered letters to get this military number. No response. The controversy would be over with just a simple number. The entire matter could have easily been cleared up with a simple number. Corrigan said in fact that if Gyi was not Nepalese it was a 99.9999999% a no. I understand that Gyi's unofficial response to all these things to his followers was that he used different names, which is a SUCH a CLASSIC, con man fraud game excuse. And that he couldn’t be bothered clearing his name.

The FBI paid a visit to Gyi some years back and he more or less disappeared from the scene for awhile. I once knew all the details of that meeting from the military groups who talked with one of the agents, but I can’t be quoted on any of that part. Can’t remember. Now Gyi is creeping back in 2010 and 2011. He just rooked a Joe Lewis crowd into thinking he is Norris/Rambo.

I also know more about Gyi, but I have run out of time today to type it. Who, back in the 1980s and 1990s could confirm such wild affairs in such foreign countries, as the indispensable college employee Gyi is pressed into Rambo service by the militaries of the world and even the United Nations. The UN – what a great cover story! But times have changed on ways of checking thanks to the internet. Sure he is a good martial artist, blah, blah, blah but I think he is an insecure conman filching the naïve to feed a neurotic ego. Sooner or later you have to be smart enough to throw up a red flag.”

**tgace** · Posted On: 10/31/2011 11:25am

Go to 9:04

Go to 2:43

Even though he isn't making any personal claims of fighting in military combat, note how he still uses military style terminology as part of his teaching style. Nothing wrong with it I suppose, but it's leaves me wondering what sort of tales he is still telling and what sort of stuff his true believers are still spreading around.