Fake Police Officer Sexually Assaults Woman During Traffic Stop

A man impersonated a police officer and sexually assaulted a woman in Fort Worth, Texas, police said Monday.

In a news conference Monday afternoon, Sgt. Chris Britt said the incident took place near Team Ranch Road in west Fort Worth on Feb.18. The woman noticed a black Dodge Charger with flashing lights on its roof following her.

The victim pulled over her car thinking it was a police vehicle. The man then got out of his car and asked the woman to step out of her vehicle. The suspect then walked the victim over to the passenger side of the Charger and sexually assaulted her, the Star-Telegram reported.

The suspect then threatened the victim and drove away after which the victim went to a nearby location and called the police.

“Because this was a potential traffic stop style situation that was on the freeway in that area we're looking or anyone that may have been by, driving by that saw this that could give us a little bit more information,” Britt said, Fox 4 News reported.

Police described the suspect as a 6-feet tall man with a stocky build and a southern accent last seen wearing a dark-colored jacket and dark-colored “jogger-style” pants. The car, on the other hand, was a four-door Dodge Charger with tinted windows, black rims on its wheels and Texas license plate.

Anyone with information about the suspect was requested to call 817-469-8477.

Britt said if any person suspects being pulled over by a police impersonator, he or she must slow down below the speed limit and turn on emergency hazard lights. The person must then call 911 to ensure the traffic stop is legitimate and stop in a well-lit area.

In a similar incident in December 2018, a California woman posed as a police officer and groped another woman outside a bar. Denise Christine Latta, 54, entered the bar in Tustin and approached the woman after flashing an official-looking police badge. Latta started questioning the woman and asked for her identification card.

When the woman showed her the card, she cut it into several pieces with scissors. Latta then took the victim outside the bar where she forced her “to put her hands on a wall and spread her feet.” She then groped the victim during the “search” after which she asked the woman to never come back to the bar. Latta was arrested and charged with “kidnapping, robbery, false imprisonment, sexual battery, and impersonating a police officer.”