Brick man tried pulling people over pretending to be a police officer

Police in Brick have arrested a township resident and taken his vehicle after he was driving around trying to pull people over and pretending to be one of them.

A woman told Brick Police on Saturday night that a white male driving a dark silver pickup truck followed her into the Wawa parking lot on Brick Boulevard and activated blue and red emergency lights.

He then reportedly approached her and said that he was an off-duty police officer.

She felt that something was off and suspected that the driver of the pickup was impersonating an officer, so she went inside the Wawa and advised the staff.

The man pretending to be a police officer continued to linger around the victim’s parked vehicle, speaking into what appeared to be a small two-way radio.

The victim said she then exited the store at which time the male advised her that he was a retired police officer and that he was calling for backup.

She told him that she would call 9-1-1 and he then got back into the pickup and drove away.

Police picked up on another incident that occurred after the story circulated on social media which led to the discovery of a second victim.

In that case, the victim was approached by the suspect who pulled the victim over on Saturday on Barberry Lane in Brick.

Police continued to follow leads provided by both victims which led to the identification and arrest of 56-year old Kenneth Murphy of Brick.

Officers Scott Smith, Ryan Wynn, Carissa Pagnotta and Sgt. Jason Shepherd responded to Murphy's residence where he was taken into custody and charged with two counts of Impersonating a police officer.

Murphy’s pickup was also seized for having been used in the crime.

Anyone who was approached in this manner who has not yet alerted authorities is encouraged to contact Detective Bob Shepherd at 732-262-1121.

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