Impersonating a cop is a crime

A Seneca area man, Andrew Jason Elrod is out of jail, on a personal
recognizance bond, after being arrested on a charge of Impersonating a Law Enforcement
Officer.
An investigation by the Sheriff’s Office began April 7 after a deputy responded to a traffic accident in the area of Oak Creek Road and Return
Church Road. The deputy responded due to reports that 40-year old Elrod had presented a badge to
witnesses, at the scene of the accident, who had stopped to check on the welfare of those involved.
Elrod, who was the lone person in the vehicle, according to the sheriff’s office, told the witnesses that help was coming and that they could
leave the scene.
The South Carolina Highway Patrol investigated the accident and Elrod was placed under arrest.
Based on evidence, the sheriff’s office said its deputy obtained an arrest warrant
against Elrod for impersonating a law enforcement officer.
The Sheriff’s Office is asking anyone who may have had
previous contact with Elrod in similar circumstances, or in which a badge was presented, to call
the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office at 864-638-4111 and file a report .

Sheriff Mike Crenshaw says deputies are instructed to provide their names to those
that they come in contact with, as well as the purpose for which the contact is being made, if it is feasible.  The public is welcome to ask to see a deputy’s
identification and badge. Some deputies dress in plain clothes.