Deputies are searching for two fake officers in St. Johns County after a pair of Jacksonville nurses reported getting pulled over by different men who turned out not to be cops.
The St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office said the two traffic stops were reported to have happened recently along Interstate 95, according to our News4Jax partner.
In the first incident, a female nurse with a Jacksonville area hospital was traveling north on her way to work from St. Johns County when red and blue lights came on behind her.
The nurse said a white man in his 50s with very short or shaved hair approached her car, asking for her driver’s license. He said she was speeding.
She also noted he was wearing a tan uniform with a name tag of Moyer or Moer, but he didn't have a gun or a police belt, deputies said.
He told the woman to “consider this a warning” and handed her license back to her after studying it, deputies said.
The traffic stop occurred in Duval County, near the Duval-St. Johns county line.
Then It Happened Again
In the second incident, another female nurse with a Jacksonville area hospital was traveling south on her way home from work, when red and blue lights apparently mounted at the top of the windshield came on behind her.
The nurse said the car was a dark colored Chevrolet four-door sedan, which pulled up beside her before falling back and activating the red and blue lights.
This time the fake officer was described as a thin framed, shorter black man. She told deputies he was wearing rimmed glasses, a blue striped polo shirt, a black hat and a plastic tag around his neck that read “JSO Detective.”
The nurse said that he stopped her for speeding and did not show a badge or any identification. He also did not appear to be armed with a firearm.
The fake officer then exited on County Road 210 after returning the nurse’s driver’s license.
What You Should Know
St. Johns deputies said that drivers can turn on their hazard lights and safely drive to a well-lit, populated area if they are concerned about a stop.
Drivers can also call local law enforcement to determine if an actual officer to attempting to stop them. Deputies recommend having law enforcement numbers saved to cell phones.
Law enforcement officers have official badges and wallet credentials that should be displayed or readily available when performing official duties.
According to St. Johns deputies, SJSO does not wear tan uniforms.
Anyone with information regarding the subjects mentioned or someone conducting traffic stops with unlawfully installed police equipment is encouraged to call (904) 824-8304.
