Police Impostor Threatened Hispanic Community Says Outraged Chief

HANOVER, MD — A Hanover man who for months preyed on Hispanic business owners as he threatened deportation as he posed as an Anne Arundel County Police officer and took money from Latino residents, faces multiple criminal charges. Christopher Jefferson, 41, of the 7500 block of Trafalgar Circle in Hanover, was arrested Aug. 1 by authorities who say he has pulled similar scams in other parts of the country, even as police forces try to build bridges with the Latino community.

At a Friday press conference, Police Chief Timothy Altomare said that complaints surfaced starting last winter, and investigators believe that Jefferson has used the same ruse in other parts of the country. While he is scared to know how many people have fallen victim to what could be a federal case, the chief urged residents to contact police if they were taken advantage of by Jefferson.

"You have nothing to fear from the Anne Arundel County Police Department," Altomare said to Hispanic residents. "Please trust us. You will never get asked for money by an Anne Arundel County policeman. No one will ever say to you, 'You need to do this to stay out of trouble.' That's not how we do business here."

Jefferson first approached county police during the 2018 Christmas season as someone who wanted to help the district police stations distribute presents to families in need. He posed as a superhero character popular in Mexico to deliver gifts with police. From there, he told businesses he planned a heritage festival to honor the Latino community, and needed charitable donations to stage the event. Instead, Jefferson pocketed the money from Annapolis and West County business owners, Altomare said.

Detectives first received reports about someone impersonating police and extorting money from Hispanic business owners on July 23. Investigators say Jefferson visited area businesses owned and operated by members of the Hispanic community and solicited donations for a purported charity TSI Trinity Syndicates Impact, which Jefferson claimed helped the Hispanic community. He would sometimes wear a bulletproof vest, a body camera and a badge and would often claim that he worked closely with the Anne Arundel County Police, according to a news release. The suspect would frequently show pictures of himself having close interaction with actual police officers.

Chief Altomare said at a press conference that he was "enraged" and struggling to keep his composure. “We work so hard to make sure that this badge and this patch bring positivity, calm to chaos, safety to violence, and service to everyone. That I’m having a hard time assimilating as I go through this thing, how a human being could do this.”

Once Jefferson asked that a community outreach officer from the Anne Arundel County Police Department meet with him to comfort a young man who feared police. Detectives later learned that the suspect manipulated the officer to make his scheme credible.

In exchange for the requested donations, Jefferson would agree to perform licensing tasks on behalf of the business owner. As a result of this scam, Jefferson extorted tens of thousands of dollars from unsuspecting local business owners, police said.

When detectives executed a search warrant at Jefferson’s residence they found a ballistic vest and multiple “TSI” badges.

Jefferson is charged with:

• Theft: $1,500 to under $25,000 (two counts)
• Fraudulent identity information theft between $1500 and $25,000 (two counts)
• Possession of bulletproof armor
• Impersonating a police officer (four counts)
• Possession/use of a false government identification document
• Fraud use of personal identification to avoid prosecution

Authorities said Jefferson had several aliases, including Christopher Tate.

County Executive Steuart Pittman said that the police department is here to protect and to serve regardless of race, income, immigration status or national origin. "Somebody exploited vulnerable people in our community wearing a badge, pretending to be a law enforcement person," Pittman said, which angered him.

Many Latinos are leaving countries where police take money from residents, and Jefferson has exploited that, Altomare said. This scam could set the department's relationship with the immigrant community back 20 years, the chief said.

Authorities believe there are dozens of other victims in the county who may be hesitant to come forward. Business owners and operators who have been victimized are asked to call the Anne Arundel County Police TipLine at 410-222-4700 or the western district police station at 410-222-6155.

Undocumented residents will not be asked about their immigration status when they call police, Altomore said. Officers would like their name in order to prosecute, but that will not be shared with immigration authorities.