The Phoenix Veterans Affairs Health System has been buried beneath a barrage of scandal for months, but at least its administrators know the difference between Halloween prank and mockery.

A VA employee has been placed on leave for dressing up as disabled veteran and local whistleblower Brandon Coleman for Halloween. When this individual arrived at the office Halloween party, it was quickly apparent that his costume was designed to mock and belittle Coleman for raising the alarm of several damaging VA practices at the hospital.

Coleman is an addiction specialist and Marine who works with veterans struggling with substance abuse. During his time at the Phoenix VA, he witnessed firsthand how easily medical professionals denied suicidal veterans treatment even though they were required by law to intervene. He also alleges that the hospital system covered up the amount of patients who committed suicide, including one veteran who killed himself on VA property.

“How symbolic is that as a veteran to commit suicide on VA property, and nobody knows about it?” Coleman said.

When Coleman started speaking out, the administration retaliated and placed him on leave. He filed for whistleblower’s protection last December to keep his job and remains employed at the Phoenix VA to keep counseling his patients.

Although he can’t be legally fired, some other employees still nurture resentment against Coleman’s whistleblowing efforts. At the Halloween party, a VA-employed social worker arrived wearing a blond wig in a ponytail, fake tattoos and a fake gut. He also walked with a cane. The costume’s target was unmistakably Coleman.

“I’ve never been more angered or saddened at the same time, in everything I’ve been through for the last year,” said Coleman. “It just shows that retaliation is alive and well in Phoenix.”

Check out Coleman’s whole story in the video below.