FAYETTEVILLE (KFSM) — Huntsville police have arrested a man who claimed he was a federal officer investigating ISIS camps in Madison County.
Gregg Nicholas was arrested April 13 in connection with criminal impersonation. He is free on a $5,000 bond.
Nicholas told a local sports shop he was working for the Department of Homeland Security and needed the shop to sew DHS patches onto camouflage t-shirts, according to federal court documents. Nicholas later told police he once held a federal firearms license and was an instructor for the National Rifle Association.
Nicholas also was driving a grey Chevrolet 3500 pickup with multiple DHS decals on the side windows, back glass, and tailgate, said Todd Thomas, Huntsville police chief. Thomas said the vehicle was equipped with red and blue flashing lights and a siren.
Police seized 14 guns — four of which belonged to Nicholas — at his home on Madison 3044, according to court documents. Nicholas was convicted in 2007 of felony criminal possession of a weapon while living in New York, court documents show. As a convicted felon, Nicholas can’t legally own a firearm.
Thomas wants anyone contacted by Nicholas in a law enforcement capacity to call Huntsville police at 479-738-2610.
Criminal impersonation is a Class D felony if a person uses a vehicle “designed, equipped, or marked so as to resemble a motor vehicle or motorcycle belonging to a federal, state, or local law enforcement agency,” according to Arkansas Code Annotated 5-37-208.