Man impersonating Arkansas officer pulls woman over, checks vehicle, authorities say

Authorities in St. Francis County say a man who falsely claimed to be a Game and Fish officer pulled over an Arkansas woman Saturday morning, marking the county's third instance of officer impersonation in two months.

According to a report from the St. Francis County sheriff's office, a 47-year-old woman was stopped about 9 a.m. near the intersection of Arkansas 38 and St. Francis County 621.

She had noticed a dark blue 2009 Chevrolet Silverado parked on the side of the road, and as she passed, the pickup pulled out behind her and a dash-mounted blue light came on.

The man was clad in a black uniform without patches and a camouflage hat, the woman told authorities. He identified himself as "Officer Strickland" and asked for her name and where she lived, according to the report.

When asked why he had pulled her over, the man reportedly told her he was a Game and Fish officer and was checking all passing vehicles for illegal game. The woman said she opened her rear pickup door and let him look inside the pickup bed and under her truck before he told her she could go.

A spokesman for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission said none of its officers are named Strickland, adding the agency's "uniforms and vehicles that are clearly marked with our logo and enforcement shield."

Police have named no suspects, and no arrests had been made at the time of the report.

St. Francis County had two instances of people impersonating law enforcement officers in October, according to the sheriff's office. One of those took place Oct. 1, when a woman was pulled over by a man wearing a T-shirt that read "St. Francis County Undercover Detective," Arkansas Online previously reported.

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