JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — A Florida man has pleaded guilty to using his twin brother's stolen identity to obtain tens of thousands of dollars in military veterans benefits.

Wayne Bowen, 64, of Jacksonville, pleaded guilty Wednesday to aggravated identity theft in Jacksonville federal court, according to court records. He faces a mandatory two years in federal prison. He must also pay $63,773 in restitution as part of his plea agreement.

According to the plea agreement, Bowen used the name, Social Security card and military discharge papers of his estranged twin brother in 2014 to apply for federally subsidized housing benefits intended for indigent military veterans. The program was administered by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Bowen admitted to federal agents that he had been using his brother’s identity for years, prosecutors said. Bowen had obtained a Florida identification card using his twin’s identity and had been arrested and convicted of felony offenses under his twin’s name. Bowen initially told the agents that he and his twin had served in and been honorably discharged from the U.S. Army but later admitted those were lies.

Based on Bowen’s fraudulent use of his brother's identity, the VA provided him with $32,434 in medical services, HUD provided him with $18,905 in housing subsidies, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture funded $12,434 in nutritional benefits for him, officials said. Bowen’s twin, who lives in another state, confirmed that he didn't apply for any of the benefits and that he never gave Bowen permission to use his name.

The Navy has confirmed that video showing the final moments of an F-35C Lightning II landing aboard an aircraft carrier and an image of an F-35C in the water are authentic and depict Monday's crash aboard the USS Carl Vinson.

"The ship has assessed that the video and photo covered in the media yesterday were taken onboard USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) during the crash," Cmdr. Hayley Sims, a spokeswoman for the Navy's 7th Fleet, told Military.com in an email.

The incident left seven sailors injured, while the pilot safely ejected and was later recovered. The Navy has said it is "making recovery operations arrangements" for the aircraft.

A Space Force captain traveling with their spouse stood stunned at the Spirit Airlines ticket counter this past October hoping to take advantage of the company's waived baggage fees for active-duty service members.

But there was a problem: The Spirit employee didn't believe the Space Force exists.

The officer showed a military-issued ID card, pulled up the official website on their phone and explained the recent history of the Space Force. The desk attendant believed the service member was no longer active in the Air Force, couldn't comprehend the existence of the new branch and didn't want to issue the discount.

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Conor William Deans, a Space Force ROTC cadet at The Citadel in Charleston, South Carolina, is the first student from the historic military college to accept a commission for the branch.

One day, he was sitting at a burger restaurant with his fellow cadets when a patron stopped by the table and asked them which branch of the military they planned on joining.

Deans proudly told the man he was joining the Space Force.

"'Space Force? Is that real?'" Deans recalled the man asking. "I tried to explain to him what it was, but he seemed even more confused."

Deans said he was encouraged to join the Space Force in 2019 when Gen. John Raymond, then with the Air Force, came to campus to talk about his military career. When Raymond became the first chief of space operations, The Citadel cadet said he wanted to be a part of history.

But he said the public has been slow to catch on to the role of the new branch.

"In a lot of ways, it's still lumped in with the Air Force," Deans said. "It's still new and hasn't expanded its own culture yet, but I think that'll grow and change."

Some recent comments from senior military leaders have muddled the relationship between the Air Force and the Space Force.

Earlier this month, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall spoke about the relationship between the branches at a Center for a New American Security virtual event Jan. 19.

"We want the Space Force to be an independent, separate service," Kendall said. "But we also want it to stay as tightly coupled to the Air Force and the Department of the Air Force as it's necessary for it to be a success."

Some Guardians complained about Kendall's comment on social media and said they want the Space Force's top leadership to help shape a distinct identity for the service to the general public.