Authorities: New Jersey man arrested in Florida for impersonating sheriff
A Morris County man claiming he was “the sheriff” was arrested in Florida on New Year’s Day after investigators said he tried to impersonate a law enforcement officer to get rid of a lien placed against his new home.
News 12 Staff
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Jan 3, 2020, 8:33 PM
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Updated 1,574 days ago
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A Morris County man claiming he was “the sheriff” was arrested in Florida on New Year’s Day after investigators said he tried to impersonate a law enforcement officer to get rid of a lien placed against his new home.
Todd Gieger, 51, of Montville, faces two counts of false impersonation of a law enforcement officer, according to the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office.
Sheriff’s investigators said they learned in November that Gieger tried to intimidate a subcontractor who had placed a lien against the home Gieger was having built in Sarasota County due to lack of payment.
Geiger drove to the subcontractor’s neighborhood in a white Maserati with New Jersey license plates and asked neighbors about him.
“He was wearing a bulletproof vest, had a law enforcement type badge clipped to his belt, and he was presenting himself as the sheriff,” Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Jason Mruczek told news outlets.
Gieger also allegedly called other subcontractors involved in the lien and the construction company building his home, officials said. During these calls he also apparently claimed to be a law enforcement officer.
The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office did not say how the allegations came to light or if Gieger made any statements when deputies arrested him.
The Associated Press wire services contributed to this report.
