Brick Man Charged With Impersonating Cop After 2 People Accosted

BRICK, NJ — A Brick Township man was accused of impersonating a police officer after two people were accosted Saturday in Brick, township police said Monday.

Kenneth Murphy, 56, of Brick was arrested at his home and charged with two counts of impersonating a police officer, Sgt. Jim Kelly said.

The first incident reported to police happened Saturday evening outside the Wawa at Brick Boulevard and Cedar Bridge Avenue, police said.

A young woman told police that a man driving a dark silver pickup truck followed her vehicle into the Wawa parking lot and activated blue and red emergency lights on the truck. The man approached her and told her that he was an off-duty police officer, she said. Suspecting the pickup truck driver was impersonating an officer, the young woman went inside the Wawa and advised the staff, she said. The man continued to linger around her parked vehicle, speaking into what appeared to be a small two-way radio, she said.

The woman left the store, and the man told her he was a retired police officer and that he was calling for backup. She told him she would call 911, and the man got back into the pickup and drove away, Kelly said.

After information about the Wawa incident circulated on social media, police learned there was a second victim. The man in the pickup truck had pulled over a second victim, a male, earlier in the day on Barberry Lane in Brick, Kelly said.

Kelly said information provided by the two victims led them to Murphy.

Officers Scott Smith, Ryan Wynn, Carissa Pagnotta and Sgt. Jason Shepherd arrested Murphy at his home. Kelly said Murphy’s pickup was also seized as having been used in the crime.

Anyone who was approached in this manner who has not yet alerted authorities is encouraged to contact Detective Bob Shepherd at 732-262-1121.

Note: An earlier version of this article said both victims were female. The second victim was male. Patch regrets the error.

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