Police have charged a man training to be a 911 dispatcher in municipal court with impersonating a police officer and careless driving.
According to court documents, Adam Schenk, 23, drove recklessly and turned on emergency equipment Saturday night in order to pull over a woman on Highway 152 near Route One.
She was suspicious of the situation including the car Schenk was driving, a souped-up Crown Victoria similar to a police cruiser you'd see around town.
When the victim took a picture on her phone, Schenk ran a red light to avoid her, according to court records.
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This comes a month after prosecutors charged 51-year-old Willie Zimmerli for allegedly doing the same thing on Interstate 70 near the stadium complex.
In that case, records say Zimmerli pulled a gun on the man he pulled over. No one was hurt.
Then in late April, Smithville police issued a warning about a police impersonator.
A woman told officers a silver pick-up truck with police lights pulled her over on 169 Highway. A man walked up and yelled at her for tailgating.
41 Action News went to Schenk's house in Gladstone looking for an explanation. While there was movement inside the home, no one came to the door.
According to his Facebook profile, Schenk graduated with a degree in criminal justice from University of Central Missouri. He also has several dashcam videos of what he calls bad drivers.
Neighbors told 41 Action News Schenk wanted to be a police officer -- so much that he went to the academy but didn't finish because of health reasons.
They don't believe he had any malicious intentions when he tried to pull over the woman Saturday night.
Besides the criminal charges, a KCPD spokesperson said the department has launched an internal investigation looking into these allegations.
In the meantime Schenk is still by employed by the city. He faces a judge on Sept. 27.
ADVICE FROM POLICE
What should you do if you think someone pulling you over isn't an officer?
KCPD said you should call 911.
You can also drive to a police station or public area.
All police officers will have identifying markings on their uniform or badge. And when you ask where they work, they will quickly identify their department.
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Andres Gutierrez can be reached at andres.gutierrez@kshb.com
