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Authorities Worried After 5 Police Impersonation Cases In 30 Days

DENVER (CBS4) - Denver police say another police impersonator is targeting women in the metro area and there have been five stops by at least one impersonator in the last month alone.

Police are trying to figure out if the same man is behind at least two of the cases.

"It's a concern and it is a safety issue," Raquel Lopez with Denver police said.

In the past 30 days there have been five incidents involving bogus officers in the metro area. Women have been pulled over from Douglas County to Denver to Aurora.

On April 8 a fake officer stopped a woman in broad daylight off University Boulevard and Cedar Avenue. Lopez said the driver turned on blue and white lights in a white, unmarked car.

"He did present a badge but it didn't look like a police badge, and something about it just didn't seem right," she said.

Lopez said the suspect is a 6-foot African-American man in his 40s or 50s. He got out of his car wearing a fake uniform, threatened to give her a ticket, and then left the area.

On April 16 the victim saw the same vehicle and male in the area of 6th Avenue and Bannock Street.

"She did not have an interaction with him and was unable to obtain a license plate," Lopez said.

Destini Brionez works right in front of where the incident took place.

"It makes you a little nervous about trusting authority. I don't know whether to pull over or not," Brionez said.

Lopez said the suspect description is similar to the man in the Aurora case, but detectives do not believe it's the same person. She said concerned residents who are pulled over can call 911 for peace of mind.

Brionez said until arrests are made she'll keep a wary eye on her rear view mirror.

"It scares me a little bit that the people who are flashing their lights may not be the police," she said.

Police don't know why the bogus officers are on the prowl, but they say anyone with questions about an officer should call 911 for verification.

Additional Information From The Denver Police Department

Anyone with information is asked to call Denver police at (720) 913-2000. Remain anonymous and call Crime Stoppers at (720) 913-STOP (7867). Text to CRIMES (274637) then title DMCS and enter the message or send an e-mail to metro-denvercrimestoppers.com.

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