Doug Huffman
Banned
imported post
http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/jan/29/officers_arrest_man_police_like_car28965/
GOOSE CREEK — A former private security guard at the Charleston Naval Weapons Station was arrested this weekend after police say they caught him driving through the city in a car equipped with blue lights, a siren and police-like decals.
Police say they found guns and ammunition in a Ford Crown Victoria that had 'DARE' painted on the hood.
Goose Creek police say Jon Christopher Esco had four guns in a holster and in his clothes, and that they found more ammunition inside his white Ford Crown Victoria. A camcorder and radar detector were mounted on the dash and two switches near the steering wheel activated lights placed on the outside of the vehicle.
Warrants charge Esco, 50, of Charleston with impersonating a police officer and improper use of a blue light. He was released from the Berkeley County Detention Center on Sunday on a $5,232.50 personal recognizance bond.
Esco could not be reached for comment Monday. The phone at his house had been disconnected.
Goose Creek police Lt. John Grainger said authorities haven't uncovered anything to suggest that Esco had pulled anyone over or presented himself as an officer to anyone in the public. Grainger said police have not obtained a search warrant that would allow them to watch any of the videotapes recovered from the camera on the dashboard or elsewhere in the car.
An incident report said the car Esco was driving Friday had "D.A.R.E. to resist drugs and violence" and a gold star painted on the hood of the car. D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) is a program that gives school-age children the skills they need to avoid involvement in drugs, gangs and violence. Police officers often visit schools through the program.
An officer stopped Esco on St. James Avenue when a check of the license plate showed the car belonged to an individual and not a police department.
The report said Esco, wearing a green field jacket, black jeans and black boots, told officers he worked at the Weapons Station and showed them a security identification card, a permit authorizing him to carry a concealed weapon on the base and a yellow badge that said "Concealed Weapons Permit."
Police called the Weapons Station and discovered he hadn't worked there in six months, the report said. He was supposed to have turned in his ID and permit before leaving the station, documents state.
Jon Christopher Esco
Scott Bassett, public affairs officer for the Weapons Station, said Monday that Esco at one time worked for a security company that contracted guards to the base. Bassett said he didn't know how long Esco was assigned to the Weapons Station.
Grainger said Esco does not face a weapons charge because he had a legitimate concealed weapons permit. According to a report, Esco had a 9 mm Ruger in a holster on his hip; two revolvers inside pockets and a third revolver attached to his belt buckle. Officers found two fully loaded 9 mm magazines attached to the inside of his belt, pressed against the small of his back, the report said.
The police report said Esco was told by a Berkeley County sheriff's deputy last year to remove any law enforcement markings from the vehicle. The car didn't have blue lights on it at the time.
He faces a maximum one-year sentence in prison and a $500 fine if found guilty of the more serious crime of impersonating an officer and a maximum 30 days in jail and $100 fine on the blue light charge.
Reach Andy Paras at 745-5891 or aparas@postandcourier.com.
http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/jan/29/officers_arrest_man_police_like_car28965/
GOOSE CREEK — A former private security guard at the Charleston Naval Weapons Station was arrested this weekend after police say they caught him driving through the city in a car equipped with blue lights, a siren and police-like decals.
Police say they found guns and ammunition in a Ford Crown Victoria that had 'DARE' painted on the hood. Goose Creek police say Jon Christopher Esco had four guns in a holster and in his clothes, and that they found more ammunition inside his white Ford Crown Victoria. A camcorder and radar detector were mounted on the dash and two switches near the steering wheel activated lights placed on the outside of the vehicle.
Warrants charge Esco, 50, of Charleston with impersonating a police officer and improper use of a blue light. He was released from the Berkeley County Detention Center on Sunday on a $5,232.50 personal recognizance bond.
Esco could not be reached for comment Monday. The phone at his house had been disconnected.
Goose Creek police Lt. John Grainger said authorities haven't uncovered anything to suggest that Esco had pulled anyone over or presented himself as an officer to anyone in the public. Grainger said police have not obtained a search warrant that would allow them to watch any of the videotapes recovered from the camera on the dashboard or elsewhere in the car.
An incident report said the car Esco was driving Friday had "D.A.R.E. to resist drugs and violence" and a gold star painted on the hood of the car. D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) is a program that gives school-age children the skills they need to avoid involvement in drugs, gangs and violence. Police officers often visit schools through the program.
An officer stopped Esco on St. James Avenue when a check of the license plate showed the car belonged to an individual and not a police department.
The report said Esco, wearing a green field jacket, black jeans and black boots, told officers he worked at the Weapons Station and showed them a security identification card, a permit authorizing him to carry a concealed weapon on the base and a yellow badge that said "Concealed Weapons Permit."
Police called the Weapons Station and discovered he hadn't worked there in six months, the report said. He was supposed to have turned in his ID and permit before leaving the station, documents state.
Jon Christopher EscoScott Bassett, public affairs officer for the Weapons Station, said Monday that Esco at one time worked for a security company that contracted guards to the base. Bassett said he didn't know how long Esco was assigned to the Weapons Station.
Grainger said Esco does not face a weapons charge because he had a legitimate concealed weapons permit. According to a report, Esco had a 9 mm Ruger in a holster on his hip; two revolvers inside pockets and a third revolver attached to his belt buckle. Officers found two fully loaded 9 mm magazines attached to the inside of his belt, pressed against the small of his back, the report said.
The police report said Esco was told by a Berkeley County sheriff's deputy last year to remove any law enforcement markings from the vehicle. The car didn't have blue lights on it at the time.
He faces a maximum one-year sentence in prison and a $500 fine if found guilty of the more serious crime of impersonating an officer and a maximum 30 days in jail and $100 fine on the blue light charge.
Reach Andy Paras at 745-5891 or aparas@postandcourier.com.
Either we are equal or we are not. Good people ought to be armed where they will, with wits and guns and the truth. NRA KMA$$
