Man charged with impersonation of Georgia police officer

While patrolling Niagara Falls Boulevard, two Amherst police officers came across a man acting suspiciously about 1 a.m. Monday.

The man was wearing a backpack and walking down the boulevard near North French Road. When patrol passed the man, he crouched down, simulated that he was pulling a gun from the holster and pointed his hands at the patrol car, Assistant Chief Tim Green said.

Seeing this, the officers in the patrol car, Robert Stephens and Paul Alexander, turned around. The man then ran away, dropping his backpack.

He was apprehended and told police he was an officer and "didn't mean anything by it."

Amherst police recovered two pieces of identification from two different police departments in Georgia. During their investigation, officers learned he was no longer employed by one of the agencies and it was unknown if he ever worked at the other.

John Hunt, 32, of Lockport, was charged with criminal impersonation of a police officer, a felony; menacing; and possession of marijuana.