Jasper County Authorities Charge Man With Impersonating Federal Agent:

Jeremiah J. Hulen (mug shot JPD)

Authorities in Joplin have charged a 20-year-old man with  impersonating a federal agent and want to hear from anyone else who may have had similar dealings with the man.

Joplin police Lt. Michael Hobson said in a news release that Jeremiah J. Hulen was taken into custody following a traffic stop yesterday.   That stop was made after the truck and license plates matched the description of a vehicle that was involved in an incident Saturday afternoon in the parking lot of PetSmart at 520 S. Range Line Road.

On Saturday, a man wearing a hat with the word “Police” on it pulled in behind a woman and accused her of speeding in her vehicle, then allegedly identified himself  as a federal agent.

An off-duty police officer was nearby in the store's parking lot at the time, spotted what was taking place, approached the man and woman, pulled out his badge and told them he was a Joplin police officer.

Hobson says the man then ran to his green Chevrolet truck that had Arizona plates and sped off.

Joplin police are asking anyone who may have been approached in a similar manner recently or witnessed the incident Saturday call Detective Ron Buchanan at 417-623-3131, ext. 239.