A 17-year-old man authorities said has a history of impersonating officers in Cobb County was arrested July 4 after giving a family false information about where they could legally shoot fireworks, Channel 2 Action News reported.
The family had planned to shoot their fireworks in Austell city park. When real police officers told them to move out of the park, they went to Center Street and Pine Street.
At that point, Samuel Mallard, dressed in a police jacket, pulled up in an unmarked Nissan Altima and told the family to go back to the park and ignore what the Austell police had said, according to Channel 2.
When questioned by the family, Mallard gave a fake badge number and referred to himself as “Sergeant Jackson.” One family member shot a video of Mallard.
The video came in handy when they returned to the park and Austell officers threatened to give them a citation. The family showed the officers the video of Mallard, leading to his arrest.
According to Channel 2, this is the fourth time Mallard has done this. He was charged with felony impersonating a police officer and could face five years in prison. He was released on bond.
Police told the news station that Mallard got the police jacket through a family member who worked as a vendor for the department.
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