A Florida man with a history in law enforcement is facing new trouble after authorities say he impersonated a police officer—using an old badge and a fake backstory about tracking a missing girl.
Paul Fluty, 39, was caught this week in Deltona, a city just north of Orlando, sitting in a parked vehicle and claiming he was part of a “task force.” Body camera footage shows Fluty flashing a physical badge and even an image of a police ID on his phone while spinning a story about a girl who “keeps on pinging” nearby.
The deputies who approached him quickly realized the truth: Fluty is no longer a cop. He was fired by the Miami-Dade Police Department in May after failing a urine test. Despite his past accolades—he was named Officer of the Year in 2020 after being shot in the line of duty—he had no legal authority to act as an officer.
When arrested, Fluty protested, telling deputies, “You can Google my name. I got officer of the year and everything. I don’t know how I’m impersonating.” His explanation? That he gave out his old badge and credentials “out of habit” and “by mistake.” The sheriff’s office reports he is actually a private investigator who may have been conducting an insurance investigation in the area.
Fluty was taken into custody Monday and posted bail the next day, leaving the question of whether nostalgia—or delusion—led him to masquerade as a law enforcement officer.
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