OC Man Accused of Impersonating Cop and Groping Women at Gunpoint

An Orange County man who allegedly impersonated a police officer while fondling two women in separate incidents in the Hollywood area was in custody today, authorities reported.

Joseph Christopher Moore, 39, of Anaheim was taken into custody on Tuesday at his residence and booked on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon -- a firearm, the Los Angeles Police Department reported.

Moore was being held on $1 million bail.

According to police, the suspect approached the first victim in the 6100 block of De Longpre Avenue on Nov. 24 as she was searching for her keys. He produced a badge and identification, told the victim to get against a wall and then searched her while fondling her breasts and buttocks, police said.

He then pulled a handgun from his waistband and warned the woman that he would shoot her if she screamed, then fled, according to police.

On Nov. 30, the suspect followed a woman into her parking area in the 500 block of Kingsley Drive in East Hollywood. He pressed a badge against her car’s driver-side window and told the woman her registration was expired, police said. He ordered the woman out of the vehicle and had her open the trunk, saying he needed to search for weapons.

The man then ordered the woman against a wall for a pat-down search, during which he fondled her inner thighs and buttocks several times, according to police. The victim said she believed the suspect had a gun holster on his hip.

Police had circulated security video footage in hopes that someone would recognize the man, resulting in “numerous tips and information received from community members” that led detectives to identify Moore as the suspect, according to an LAPD statement.

Other possible victims were urged to call police Detective D. Maltos at (213) 473-0447; or (877) LAPD-247.

City News Service