COOK COUNTY, Ga. (WTXL) — An alert has been issued after a woman was allegedly pulled over by someone impersonating a law enforcement officer.
Cook County Sheriff Doug Hanks is now warning the public about a report of a person impersonating a law enforcement officer.
According to deputies, a woman reported that she was traveling around 8 p.m. Wednesday night on the east side of Cook County near the intersection of Highway 76 and Highway 37 when she noticed a vehicle behind her displaying flashing blue lights.
The woman said she pulled over and the vehicle pulled behind her. An individual then approached the woman's vehicle and asked for her driver's license.
The woman told deputies that the car was a newer model car that was either white or light colored and didn't appear to have roof mounted lights or markings.
After returning back to the woman, the individual asked the woman to step out of the car to complete some roadside sobriety tests. After the woman complied with the order, the individual searched her car.
The woman said that the individual finished the search and allowed her to leave.
"The incident was only made known because the victim had misplaced a personal item during the traffic stop and called the Sheriff's Office in an attempt to find it," deputies wrote in a press release.
The impersonator has been described as a white man around 40 years old with a medium build and light brown or blonde hair. He is reportedly around 5-foot-10 inches tall. The victim told deputies that the man didn't have a badge or ID on his shirt but did have some type of badge on his belt and a gun holstered around his back.
"The sheriff's office does not employ any unmarked cars in our fleet, but we do utilize several unmarked pickup trucks that are used by specialized units," Sheriff Hanks said. "Traffics stops are not encouraged by deputies operating these vehicles but are sometimes unavoidable."
The sheriff's office has since confirmed that no traffic stops were conducted by personnel in that area at the time reported by the victim.
The Cook County Sheriff's Office shared the following tips if you are uncomfortable or unsure if you are being pulled over by a legitimate law enforcement officer:
- Call 911. If you are uncertain about the identity of the person trying to stop you the 911 operator can help confirm or deny the identity of the person behind you and in the chance that it is an imposter they can dispatch a real law enforcement officer to assist you.
- Never attempt to “outrun” the vehicle pulling you over. Actually, slowing down is the proper action to take in order to indicate to the officer that you are not attempting to flee.
- Signal your intent to pull over. This can be done by engaging the correct turn signal or even your hazard flashers.
- Only pull over in a well lit, public place. If a public place is not available proceed to the closest place where you feel comfortable and safe.
“The Sheriff’s Office, and all law enforcement officers in general, are very considerate to the public’s concerns about these types of instances”, advised Sheriff Hanks. “Situations such as this concern us greatly and it is our chief duty to ensure that the safety of our citizens is of utmost importance”, added Hanks.
If anyone has had an encounter similar to this or may have information about this particular incident, they are urged to call the Cook County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division at 229-896-7471 or your local law enforcement agency.
