True Stories #184 - Impersonating an Officer

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Episode Transcript

(00:01):
I'm Seth Andrews, and what you'reabout to hear is a true story.
Zachary Prince apparently wanted the residence ofSeminole County, Florida, to think that
he was a police officer. Hewas not. Zachary Prince was a security

(00:26):
guard, but most civilians might nothave known the difference. Zachary wore a
vest and had security writing on it, and he openly carried a badge and
had a gun and a taser,and apparently he had been using his police
officer facade to bend the laws inhis favor. September twenty twenty, fake

(00:47):
policeman Zachary Prince was speeding home aftera long day of work at his security
firm when he zoomed by a realpolice car. Officer Omar Ford had just
finished his own shift when Zachary blewby him on the road at alarming speed.
He was swerving here and there.Officer Ford suspected he was a drunk

(01:11):
driver, and so he gave chaseat speed. Officer Ford pulled up alongside
Zachary Prince and flashed his lights andsignaled slow down, but Zachary started flashing
his own police lights right back athim. This was a fake policeman lighting

(01:33):
up the real one. Body camfootage revealed what happened next. Zachary Prince
finally pulled over omar Ford, realizingright away something was not right. Zachary
was not wearing a police uniform.He was wearing a security company vest with
the words criminal Task Force. Hewasn't using police protocols, and his name

(02:00):
was not in any law enforcement database. This was just a guy with lights
and a badge and a gun.You know, I'm surprised at just how
common this kind of thing is.Several stories from twenty twenty three, there
was a nineteen year old Tennessee man. His name was Jackson Jones. He

(02:21):
was driving around parts of Oklahoma.He had a police tactical belt and knives
and handcuffs and a flashlight and someother stuff. He was wearing a black
American flag shirt and in his KiaSedan. He would pull people over and
pass himself off as an Oklahoma Sheriff'sdeputy. Jackson Jones was arrested for impersonating

(02:46):
an officer. They also found anopen container in his car. Christian Mansoor,
eighteen years old, He tried topull over an off duty cop in
Michigan. When he realized what hehad done, he went back to his
car, supposedly to get his driver'slicense, jump behind the wheel, drove
off. They caught him in anearby trailer park. He was trying to

(03:07):
switch out his license plate. Alsoin the first part of twenty twenty three,
Trayvon Stevenson, Houston, Texas.He really wanted to get into a
music concert that was part of theNCAA Final Four Weekends, So he showed
up at the concert and he waswearing a vest that said K nine Units.

(03:30):
That did not work for Trayvon Stevenson. Nashville WSMB Channel four television did
an entire feature on these police impersonators. Many are former comps that use old
credentials or security guards who have officiallooking uniforms and belts and badges. They
found one guy. His name wasChris Tubbs. He was posting videos of

(03:53):
himself on TikTok wearing a police vestwhile working alongside unsuspecting real cops at places
like the Grand Old Opry in Tennessee. The whole thing can be so confusing,
especially in a rush. It's confusingfor the public and for police criminologists

(04:15):
have distilled fake cops into three maincategories. There are people who just aspire
to be cops. There are compulsivedeviants, and then there are the criminals,
people looking for access to our pocketsand cars and houses and businesses,
robbers and invaders and much worse tresspassinginto our lives by pretending authority that they

(04:42):
do not have. There are drugcartels that have actually systemized police impersonation,
looking like cops so they can smuggledrugs across national boarders. Now, at
the end of the day, wecan learn something from people like Florida Fake
Zachary Prints, and law enforcement doeshave some tips to help us tell the

(05:04):
difference between the real and the fake. First, you have the right to
ask for a name, an agencyname, and a badge number. You
can also ask for an ID cardif you're not sure about the uniform.
Many fake cops present outwardly, butthey don't have identification in many states.

(05:27):
If you feel unsafe, unsure,threatened, you can pull over in a
well lit public place where there willbe witnesses. Dial nine one one and
the dispatcher can immediately verify the officer'sidentity and then communicate to the officer on
site. I don't know that oneseems a little fishy. I'm not sure
you want to drive away from apolice officer or keep going when they say

(05:50):
stop, But that's what one ofthe recommendations is. Next on the safety
list. Check the police car.Does it look old and messed up and
kind of worn down? Is therea number on it or reflective police decals?
Are there police lights but you don'tremember hearing a siren of any kind?

(06:12):
And watch out for online police impersonators. They often present themselves using identification
with eagles and flags and other symbolsinstead of an officer photo, ID number
and other credentials. Bottom line isbe safe out there, my friends.
There are so many good people whoare doing the difficult and often dirty job

(06:35):
of police work, but there aremany others pulling a fast one as they
try to pull us over. Andthe phenomenon of the bogus badges is a
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