Spring Farm man convicted of impersonating police three times in a night
A man impersonated a police officer three times in a single night in Sydney’s south west. The fake cop even stole a GoPro and driver’s licence from a teenage victim.
Macarthur
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A man who posed as an off-duty cop to search people’s cars and steal from teenagers has been convicted in Picton Local Court.
Peter Gordon Reid, 48, harassed residents of Mt Annan and Spring Farm on May 1 as he impersonated a police officer on three occasions in a single night.
The earthmoving contractor marched up to a group of youths at Mt Annan McDonald’s about 7.30pm and told the gathering he was a police officer.
He refused to show any official ID when asked and threatened the group with their arrest because of where they parked the cars.
The Spring Farm man then accused the youths of drug dealing before he forcibly yanked one of the youths a couple of metres before leaving the scene.
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About two hours later, Reid knocked on the door of a random Spring Farm home and continued the charade that he was an off-duty police officer.
He told the residents he was investigating a nearby assault and the offender could be hiding in their car. He was allowed to search the car and then left.
Shortly after Reid, driving a white Ford Ranger ute began to high-beam a 17-year-old riding a motorbike on Springs Rd, Spring Farm.
The teenager pulled over to let Reid pass but the wannabe cop parked behind him and told the boy he had been clocked speeding and asked for his licence.
With the victim’s licence at his nearby home, the wannabe cop agreed to follow the boy home and said words to the effect of “if you try to escape I’ll f**k you over and you’ll go to jail”.
Reid followed the boy home and observed his licence. He grabbed the Go Pro camera and driver’s licence, then left the scene.
Reid, who had been recently convicted in his absence, applied for an annulment application in Picton Local Court on Tuesday.
The 48-year-old produced two medical certificates and told the court, through lawyer Carolyn Shiels, he was on crutches for two months with a severed calf muscle and wasn’t able attend court despite his bail conditions.
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The application was dismissed by Magistrate Ian Cheetham, noting Reid had missed a number of court dates not covered by his medical certificates.
A sentence assessment report was ordered with Reid expected to be sentenced on December 11.