9x01: Imposter Cop - Let's Not Meet

[00:00:00] Hey everyone, tickets are still available for the live Let's Not Meet shows. If you go to letsnotmeetpodcast.com forward slash tour or just follow the links in the show notes

[00:00:11] You can get your hands on some tickets for both shows the first of which will be at the Neptune Theatre in Seattle, Washington On August 25th followed by a second show at the Polaris Hall in Portland, Oregon on August 26th

[00:00:24] Additionally if you're from the area you plan to attend one of these shows and you have a story that you'd like to share By all means send it to the story submission inbox at letsnotmeetstories at gmail.com

[00:00:35] and we'll see about getting it on the lineup for the live show and Remember this podcast contains adult language and content listener discretion is advised Enjoy the show My name is Andrew Tate and this is season 9 episode 1 of Let's Not Meet, a true horror podcast Let's Not Meet

[00:01:17] For some background I live in a very tiny town where it is easy to reach and hang out with my extended family The side of the family we will be mentioning today is my mom's side of the family tree

[00:01:41] My mom's side of the family has always been my favorite as they know how to have fun and Also gave birth to my favorite person my cousin Jacob

[00:01:53] To begin I loved visiting my mom's side of the family. They were lively compared to my dad's prim and proper side Yes, I indeed love them because of my cousin Jacob

[00:02:06] But I also loved this side because of the relaxed and laid-back adults, which is weird considering that my mom is so strict Among these adults is my uncle We'll call him Thomas. I used to be obsessed with him

[00:02:24] Following him around as a young child does when they find someone fascinating However, as I grew older I decided to back away as he was starting to develop a family with his new girlfriend I didn't want her to think that I was annoying.

[00:02:40] I still thought he was cool, but I just decided that I didn't need to follow him anymore And instead I started being accepted by the cousins that were my age Fast forward a year or two and he started offering me weed

[00:02:56] I was shocked after all I was only about 12 and had strict parents. So weed was incredibly taboo. I said no Immediately yet. He asked me again Come on, I'm not gonna tell on you After that comment, I felt extremely uncomfortable and just laughed it off

[00:03:17] trying to seem cool I left the interaction with a bad taste in my mouth. It was the first time I had gotten a bad feeling about him Fast forward another couple of years and I'm about 15. I had grown into my body body of a full woman by then

[00:03:37] I'm sitting on the couch in his mother's home with the other female cousins of mine watching my extended family's children. I was just kind of on my phone as teens do and I felt someone heavy plop right next to me. It was uncle Thomas

[00:03:54] Although I was wary. He wasn't doing anything particularly creepy. So I just stayed sitting He begins to talk and sympathize with me about being elected as the family babysitter I laughed and continued watching them and Directing the controlled chaos of children running about

[00:04:16] Are you feeling tired? He asked after a while Yeah, kind of I responded You should take a nap. I've got it He said carefully nudging my head onto his shoulder You see he and his girlfriend had broken up So technically I didn't have to distance myself anymore

[00:04:37] But for some reason my heart sank I had no idea why I Wasn't a little girl anymore. I just felt weird During this instance, he grabbed my thigh and tried to play it off by tickling me. I

[00:04:54] Didn't think it was worth ruining my entire family for so I didn't tell my mom But this secret was eating me alive So I ended up confiding in my favorite cousin Jacob Jacob was six foot one and was extremely built and scary many people feared him

[00:05:14] But I didn't because he adored me and doted upon me even baking me heart-shaped pastries and such But on top of the love he was extremely overprotective When I told him he was heartbroken

[00:05:29] He blamed himself for not being there and he was ready to get his friends to beat the man up in my honor But he respected my wishes to keep it a secret and instead became sort of a bodyguard Fast forward another year and my interactions with uncle Thomas

[00:05:47] Became sour as I was being a total bitch to him by now with my cousin for protection Any chance that I got I would berate him. I'm a very spicy woman so everyone thought that it was all in good fun and

[00:06:03] That was just the nature of our relationship now When he would beckon me over I would scowl at him and claim that he smelled or that he made my eyes sore I even went as far as to ignore his greeting hugs

[00:06:19] Which are customary when greeting in my family and I used the excuse that He didn't get the privilege of hugging me. I went on like that for a couple of months until one day

[00:06:30] I was again at his mother's home this time. However, my huge cousin Jacob was right next to me I had been avoiding uncle Thomas all night as he tried following me around My cousin blamed it on me wearing a crop top

[00:06:45] but I wasn't about to not wear the clothes that I wanted because of a creep as I was about to walk into the living room. He walked out of the bedroom. I Was cornered in the kitchen, but I wasn't nervous. I mean my cousin was right there

[00:07:04] What are you gonna do? He started. Oh I was just about to go into the living room. I said avoiding eye contact You don't even want to hang out with me anymore. You don't even look at me anymore he said sounding slightly irritated I

[00:07:22] Shrugged in response and tried walking past him which was when it happened He pinned me to the fridge so fast and forcefully that my vision went foggy for a moment Look at me. He said quietly My cousin stood there shocked Hey, man, let her go

[00:07:41] Jacob said but he was interrupted when my uncle told him to stay out of it if he knew what was good for him. I Felt bad for my cousin. Yes, he was six foot and he was strong

[00:07:54] But he was 16 against a 34 year old who towers over him and had much more experience with fighting He stood there dazed and shocked worst of all. He was just frozen But I continued being defiant. I refused to look at him. I Knew what it was

[00:08:14] It was that power play thing that people get off to seeing someone frail and looking up at you as you overpower them No fucking. Thank you He kept telling me to look at him and his soft. Please began converting into harsh demands All I could think of was

[00:08:32] What the fuck is this man doing in the middle of the kitchen where anyone could just walk in? But I stood my ground and I didn't look at him

[00:08:41] It wasn't until I felt the same disgusting hand that was only on my thigh a year ago now gripping my chin He forced me to look at him But I wasn't going to be scared

[00:08:55] Instead my eyes blazed with disgust. I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction that I knew that he wanted When our eyes met he smiled and let go of me He left only saying you look ugly when you scrunch your eyebrows like that

[00:09:11] My cousin told me that he would be ready next time and I agreed that I would be ready as well But the day wasn't over yet. My eyes fell on my frozen cousin who was spewing apologies now

[00:09:25] Saying that he had no idea what to do and didn't think he would be so bold as to do it in front of me This crazy motherfucker got even braver though Later during the party. I knew he was outside taking shots with the rest of the family

[00:09:39] So I went into the room with all of the boy cousins and even my older brother. I Was watching them play PC when suddenly he walked in drunk Yes, I was still shaken up, but it didn't stop me from being mouthy

[00:09:55] We were just in here having fun and you know, I was just having a good time We were just in here having fun and you ruined it get out. I said coldly This is my room though He responded with a smiling face. I

[00:10:10] Didn't know that he had moved in and there I was sitting on his bed like fucking prey He liked that fact Comfy he asked I Looked away acting like I didn't hear him This annoyed him because I would never have expected him to do what he did next

[00:10:31] You boys want to see something cool? He said as he reached for the safe They loved everything that he did and everything he did was cool to them. So they turned their attention to him waiting

[00:10:44] He unlocked his safe and pulled out three cases all of them containing guns He showed them to the thrill-seeking boys of the small town who had never seen a gun in real life I Looked away disinterested and lay back on the pillow

[00:11:03] My cousin Jacob walks in and sits next to me on the bed. I Closed my eyes and felt safe with all of the commotion from the boys and now having my protector by my side. I heard a click and Then everything went quiet

[00:11:20] I opened my eyes only to be met with a gun to my face and a room full of frozen teenagers My uncle Thomas backed up a bit and pointed it at the boys who immediately started gasping and throwing their hands up

[00:11:35] Yet they seemed to think that it was a joke. I Knew better as he pointed the gun across the room to each individual. He said get out and They slowly started giggling and scurried out of the room squealing with excitement Yet all I felt was dread. I

[00:11:54] Got up hoping that I would be allowed to leave When he pointed it at my forehead Sit down Who told you that you could leave? He said with the liquor smell permeating the air Could they not see that he was joking? My cousin was frozen but didn't leave

[00:12:14] The gun was pointed at him finally Get out My cousin shook his head and looked at me. He whispered. I'm not gonna leave My uncle Thomas looked irritated and pointed it back at me. I Was scared that he would do something to Jacob in his drunken state

[00:12:35] It's okay Jacob. He just wants to show me something I said to my cousin and with that Jacob reluctantly left Yes, it was dumb for me to send him away, but I genuinely believed I was saving his life

[00:12:49] because this psycho had a loaded gun to our foreheads as My cousin left he laughed and lowered the gun Why are you so scared? It's just a joke He said Then why did you send everyone away? I said

[00:13:07] Because you never hang out with me anymore all of a sudden you think you're all grown up as He said this he scanned my body. I Wanted to throw up. I wanted my cousin, but I didn't want to put him in danger as well. I

[00:13:23] Am grown up. I said sassily Trying to avoid eye contact again Trying to play it off as a joke and hopes that he won't touch me He moved towards me so close that I could smell the alcohol in his breath

[00:13:40] Now you haven't had enough experience to be a grown-up yet. I Knew where it was headed. I was already bracing myself in my head telling my body and mind to prepare I Was convincing my mind that what was about to happen would not make me any less valuable

[00:13:57] I was dreading the next steps. I had never done things with anyone and now Was this about to happen to me? My head was spinning. I was holding back tears. I Shut my eyes tight and I could only cry and then I heard thumping like footsteps angry footsteps

[00:14:19] My mother swung the door open to see this man with a gun to my head and the other one reaching for my body Her daughter trembling with her eyes shut tight. I Really only heard the confrontation because this all happened so quickly I

[00:14:36] Opened my eyes and my uncle was being dragged out by my mother She was yelling at him in front of everyone calling him a pervert and a child molester

[00:14:45] The police had to be called because my other uncles and my father were charging at him trying to kill him My mother and siblings tried defending him saying that he was drunk and most likely high and that we should all forgive him

[00:14:59] Considering that he was in a bad place But my parents could not do it Our family was close-knit and nobody wanted to ruin that but they also were not going to let this slide

[00:15:12] They begged us not to press charges and as much as my parents wanted to I told them I didn't want to ruin our family So instead uncle Thomas was forbidden from seeing any of us that

[00:15:24] Included his uncle's cousins nephews and nieces and his girlfriend took away visitation rights to their son. I haven't seen him since and Thinking about it has just been crazy since we used to be so close Then it escalated to that

[00:15:44] Regardless I own a pocketknife now, and I won't take anyone's shit So to the crazy motherfucker that held a gun to my head and tried to assault me For your safety, let's not meet I was nine years old at the time

[00:16:12] During the summer my older brother and I would walk to the local convenience store for our daily snack fix On this day, my brother was too busy to be bothered by his little sister

[00:16:24] I was upset that he would rather play basketball with his friends and accompany his sister to the convenience store So I set out on the mission myself Of course this was against my parents rules and I knew better I had been looking forward to my

[00:16:41] specialty snack today a bag of chili cheese Fritos with the melted nacho cheese inside if You've never tried it. I highly recommend you do The store was less than a mile away

[00:16:54] And it was a straight shot and we had traveled this path numerous times the convenience store workers knew my name. What could go wrong? I Began to walk up the cement path The street was very busy, but it had a nice sidewalk

[00:17:09] Walking against traffic the cars zipped past me It was a three-lane street going both ways and the speed limit on the street was about 55 miles per hour. I walked past my house then my neighbor's house

[00:17:22] I never realized that there weren't any other homes between my neighbor's house and the convenience store and I remembered feeling instantly alone Past my neighbor's house. There was nothing but an open field roped off with a barbed wire fence.

[00:17:41] I considered turning around right then and there, but I convinced myself that I could do this About halfway to my destination I saw an old station wagon coming down the street. It had its hazard lights on and began slowing down.

[00:17:56] I figured it was typical car trouble, but I did start to walk a little slower I was waiting for the man in the driver's seat to get out of the car But he didn't move

[00:18:08] I slowed down my pace a little more as I wasn't that far from the vehicle at this point. I locked eyes with the man and he motioned with his hand for me to come to the vehicle.

[00:18:22] I instantly felt terror something was wrong, and I didn't know what it was. I turned around scared and began walking back to my house. I glanced over my shoulder and I saw another man in the passenger seat pop his head up He must have been hiding

[00:18:39] Both doors of the vehicle opened and the two men quickly jumped out of the car I froze for a second and they both darted towards me.

[00:18:48] I ran towards my house as quickly as possible. I ran and ran. I didn't look back for fear that it would slow me down. I quickly hopped through the barbed wire fence thinking I would be safer on this side

[00:19:02] I was little and it was a lot easier for me to get through the fence than them. I scratched my arm on one of the barbs, but I couldn't feel a thing as my adrenaline was rushing so quickly.

[00:19:15] While running I noticed the station wagon sped off right past me. I waited until I couldn't see it anymore Then hopped back through the fence Still running a small red car pulled beside me and yelled. I saw what happened. Where do you live? Let me take you home.

[00:19:35] I was almost to my neighbor's house at that time. I lied and pointed at their house and yelled. This is my home Leave me alone. In my head, I was terrified

[00:19:45] I felt this was some kind of game and that he was working with the other men to try and kidnap me The red car quickly sped away.

[00:19:57] I finally made it home. I busted through the door of the house and grabbed the phone off of the wall and dialed 911 My father came into the room and was asking me questions, but I couldn't answer him. I was so out of breath.

[00:20:12] I did my best to explain to the operator that I was almost kidnapped and described the men and vehicle to the operator I was starting to hyperventilate. So my father grabbed the phone from me and gave the operator our address

[00:20:26] We hung up and he tried to calm me down and comfort me The cops arrived quickly after that. By then I had caught my breath and I was able to give them a better account of the situation

[00:20:36] While outside with the cops, the small red car passed by very slowly I began to freak out and I yelled to the cops. That's him How dare they come back and try to get me again?

[00:20:51] The red car just wanted to know where I lived so they could come back. I was terrified The car passed us, but then it made a u-turn and began slowly approaching our driveway My dad was screaming at the car ready to fight

[00:21:07] I remember the cops trying to get a handle on my dad while also screaming at the man in the red car to stop his vehicle It turns out the red car had seen what happened

[00:21:20] He was a young man with an infant in a car seat in the back of his car He had seen the attempted kidnapping and followed the station wagon until he could get the license plate number He was genuinely trying to help me

[00:21:34] I gave the license plate number to the cops and the station wagon ended up being a stolen car I was very appreciative that he had put himself and his child in danger just to help me Nothing came of that incident

[00:21:50] Since the car was stolen it couldn't be linked to any particular individual I was so terrified and had nightmares about it at least once a week Two years later we moved to a neighboring city. I felt comfort being away from that house

[00:22:07] My friend invited me over to her house, but my parents weren't home at that time I knew they wouldn't mind if I went but they wouldn't let me in I knew they wouldn't mind if I went but they weren't home to take me

[00:22:22] Being far from my old home, I felt that it would be fine to walk to her house It was only two blocks away and I could take the side streets or jump through the neighborhood yards and stay off the main road And make it there just fine

[00:22:35] Alone again. I began trespassing through my neighbor's yards My head was on swivel though. I was very aware of my surroundings I was almost to my friend's house when I saw a station wagon driving on the side of the street near me I thought to myself

[00:22:54] Absolutely. No way. Is this the same car from two years prior? You're just freaking out. There is no way I stopped and stared at the vehicle Does he see me? No The car began to slow down and made a u-turn I instantly panicked

[00:23:15] There was a church near me that had children outside on the playground I ran over to them and blended in with the crowd as much as I could The station wagon turned onto my street and drove very slowly by us It had to be him

[00:23:31] It had to be When the station wagon passed, I darted to my friend's house. I was much closer to hers than mine I told my friend's mom what happened and we played inside or supervised in the backyard for the rest of the day

[00:23:45] To this day. I don't know if it was just a strange coincidence Or if it really was the men from before But I didn't go out alone again until I was much older To the strange men in the station wagon, let's never meet again I

[00:24:20] Think I was nine It was my birthday. So I had just turned nine I celebrated my birthday the night that it happened My neighbors are travelers. So they were out of their house a lot My family watches the house often

[00:24:38] It's important that you know how the house looks our backyards are very close together. So the fences touch They have a pretty big front yard, but the passage to their front yard is very narrow So at night it's very dark there

[00:24:55] In their front yard. There is a pond with some fish And since I was the girl who liked fishing I often went there to look at the fish Our neighborhood is very quiet. So it was a big shock that our neighbor's house got robbed

[00:25:11] They had installed security cameras all over the house Well, let's get into the story My birthday went really well and everyone was happy It was probably 9 30 p.m And it was already dark outside when my mom saw a dark shadow in the backyard

[00:25:30] She had a few drinks. So she thought that she had imagined it The evening went on and by now it was 10 30 My grandma was leaving so I was going to wave to her. Goodbye But since it was dark my mom went outside with me

[00:25:47] My grandma went to her car and I waved But while I was waiting for her to speed off I felt uneasy like someone was watching me I looked at the front yard of the neighbor's house But it was too dark for me to see anything

[00:26:03] I then asked my mom if I could look at the fish But she said no because it was very dark and it was late. So we went back inside I went to sleep and I didn't hear anything unusual that night

[00:26:16] The next morning my mom called me and my sister down to sit at the dining table She looked worried. So I asked her what was wrong She then told me something that at the time I didn't really understand all too well

[00:26:31] She said that the fish was not as big as I thought She said that the neighbor's house was robbed She didn't really tell me anything because I was too young to understand But when I was 12, she told me something that made shivers go down my spine

[00:26:48] The burglars tried to get in the neighbor's house by going through our backyard So the dark shadow that my mom saw Was actually one of the men But when they couldn't get in They went to the front door

[00:27:05] When they were done, I was visible on the cameras in front of the house But I wasn't the only one The two men were right around the corner from the front lawn If my mom had let me go to look at the fish after waving my grandma goodbye

[00:27:23] I don't know what would have happened to me So to the men that robbed my kind neighbor's house Let's not meet I'm a single mom of a three-year-old girl I'm blessed that I have the most amazing parents who live about 20 minutes away from me

[00:27:57] Who keep her when I need them to? I live in the city next to their rural area And you have to go down a curvy wooded rural road to get to their house out in the country My little girl had spent the night with them the night before

[00:28:14] And I headed to their house the next day around lunch to eat with them and bring her back to my house It was a pretty day sunny a lot of bikers out. So I was on high alert driving there

[00:28:28] As anyone speeding and not paying attention could easily hit a biker Which was a big fear of mine I got there fine We ate lunch and then we headed back to my house driving on the rural road

[00:28:42] Which I know like the back of my hand and typically speed on knowing when to slow down and take certain curves, etc My little girl requested that I put her favorite song on in the car

[00:28:55] So I was kind of watching her sing as she sat in her car seat in the back of the car through the rearview mirror As we drove back home, I caught a glimpse of something blue up ahead just on the edge of the woods near the road

[00:29:10] Now I was going fast enough that the image didn't quite set in as I approached then passed it But right after passing it my brain finally processed that that thing was a blue older car It was flipped upside down and rammed into a tree

[00:29:27] The road was empty with only one house nearby and there weren't any ambulances or cars near So at first I was like what the hell? Truly the wreck didn't look like it had just happened, but I knew something was wrong in my gut

[00:29:45] I pulled my phone out and dialed 911 as I kept driving not fully processing that this had just happened This is 911. What's your emergency? Hey, I'm driving down this road I gave her the name of the road and I just passed a blue car flipped upside down

[00:30:01] It looks like they ran into a tree There wasn't anyone visible near the car and no other cars were around I'm not sure if the person is on the scene or what? What is your exact location? Is there a house close by the wreck?

[00:30:17] Try to remember where you are Is there a house close by the wreck? Try to find the nearest address. I'm sending an ambulance out now Was anyone visibly hurt or present at the scene? No, I didn't see anyone when I passed but I'm not sure

[00:30:33] I didn't get a super good look. I'm about two minutes down the road past the car now Let me turn around and go back I have my three-year-old girl in the car with me just letting you know

[00:30:44] I don't necessarily want her to see anything traumatizing, but I'll do what I need to to find anyone The car looks super bad, by the way It's okay. Don't get out of the car

[00:30:56] Keep your doors locked just see if you can find the nearest address and I will stay on the phone with you the whole time So I turned around in the nearest driveway and drove back

[00:31:06] Speeding with my heart beating fast as I now realized someone clearly might be severely hurt And I just passed them by not thinking I would be the first to arrive on the scene

[00:31:18] I was scared but in action mode ready to deal with whatever I was potentially about to see inside that vehicle When I got to the house, I thought was closest to the wreck the conversation picked back up with the operator

[00:31:33] Okay, I think i'm almost to the car I see a mailbox here hang on I gave her all the information I could to help locate where I was and then I said I see a car right here coming up on my left across from the sandpit looking area

[00:31:50] It's a blue older four-door car Okay, great an ambulance will be dispatched it won't be long before they get there do you see anyone near or in the vehicle Oh my god, wait, yes

[00:32:04] I see a man around 25 to 30 years old. He's standing in the middle of the road I pull up next to the man with my doors locked Rolled my window down with my phone still to my ear and 911 listening to me speak

[00:32:20] I immediately said oh my god, are you okay? Is that your car? The guy is slurring his words a bit clearly very injured but still standing and not in critical condition he says Yeah, i'm fine

[00:32:36] That's when I notice a large wound on the side of his head with blood all over it I say oh my god, you're bleeding. You aren't okay. I'm on the phone with 911 right now. They're sending an ambulance. Don't move

[00:32:50] I hear the 911 operator asking me if he was okay or if he was hurt I describe what i'm seeing And I see the guy's face go from concerned about getting help to fully panicked he says Is that 911 on the phone? Hang up

[00:33:10] I just need you to drive me up the road right now. Hang up the phone The operator hears him say this and she says is your daughter in the vehicle with you still I say Yes

[00:33:22] I can't drive this man anywhere. I'm not letting him in my car, especially with my little girl Meanwhile my daughter is silent in the back seat taking everything that's happening in That's when I look down and notice the man isn't wearing shoes

[00:33:39] He's standing with bare feet and there's a large wet stain on his blue jeans, which I immediately realize is urine I can smell alcohol on him and he isn't even standing that close to me

[00:33:51] Now I work in the medical field and I deal with traumatic brain injury patients often so I immediately wondered if Maybe he had some kind of brain damage from the impact And began telling the operator Oh, no, he isn't. Okay. I think he is hurt

[00:34:08] I look at the man Staying as calm and matter-of-fact as I can And I tell him I'm, sorry, but I can't drive you anywhere My little girl is in the back seat and I don't feel comfortable doing that

[00:34:19] I didn't see anyone in the vehicle when I passed so I already called 911. I think you need to let them come I can't let you in my car, but I will park over there and make sure that you're okay until they get here

[00:34:33] The man is visibly panicked and now seems pissed off He starts yelling tell them not to fucking come hang up the phone My heart literally stopped beating I began slowly and gently Pressing on the gas rolling past him to indicate that I am leaving

[00:34:50] The 911 operator in my ear says Pretend to tell me not to come Pretend to hang up But keep me on the line So that's exactly what I do Hey, I think he's okay. He doesn't seem like he needs any medical help. He lives nearby

[00:35:10] So actually don't send an ambulance out sorry for the miscommunication, okay, thanks so much Then I pretended to hang up. I Put my phone face down in the passenger seat and told him that I was going to go But that I hoped he was going to be okay

[00:35:25] That's when I noticed his pocket bulging with something silver peeking out. I Knew right then this man was armed and I had to get the hell out of there. I Smiled and said that I was sorry. I couldn't help then quickly rolled my window up and sped off

[00:35:42] Turning around further down the road and passing him again at around 65 to 70 miles per hour on a 45 mile per hour road I was crying hysterically and I picked up the phone to tell the 911 operator what had just happened

[00:35:55] She said it's okay. You did the right thing. You played it cool and appeased him We have the address and an ambulance is less than five minutes away As she asked me for my name and identifying information I see and hear sirens further up ahead

[00:36:12] Thank God for the 911 operator coaching me through the situation I still don't know what happened to the man But I do know that he was clearly intoxicated dangerous and fully panicked about the police or an ambulance

[00:36:26] Which is a scary combination that will make people do things without thinking clearly in an instant My little girl asked is the man hurt I saw his head I Just said yeah, I think he's okay. He just got a boo-boo

[00:36:42] I think he was playing and bumped into a tree a nurse is going to give him a band-aid I'm sure glad that we can help him she was satisfied and smiled continuing to listen to the music and sing when I turned the radio back on a

[00:36:57] Terrifying and creepy encounter to say the least My story happened to me just a few weeks ago I had received a call from a number that I didn't recognize so I did what all Millennials do and I let it go to voicemail

[00:37:29] To my surprise the caller left one The message was from a man with a southern accent Stating that he was a cop in our County. He was trying to get a hold of me Intrigued I looked him up sure enough. He was a cop in our County and

[00:37:48] Knowing that he was a real cop. I started going through the possibilities of why he would be calling Could my parents have been in an accident and he was trying to get a hold of me since I'm their emergency contact

[00:38:01] Could it be about the case? I was supposed to be a witness for I Called my parents first and they were fine. So I figured it had to be about the court case. I

[00:38:11] Was called on for a custody battle for one of my students but was excused due to my grandfather being an ICU. I Called the number back and the man was very friendly his voice matching the picture of him online

[00:38:26] After the pleasantries he stated that the reason he was calling was due to me missing court back in April The same time the custody battle was taking place. I Had told him that I was originally excused so I was confused as to why he was calling

[00:38:43] He said that he was calling because I had apparently been selected for a federal jury case and was absent for roll call I told him that I had never received notice of said jury duty and

[00:38:56] Still being as friendly as can be he asked if my neighborhood has been known for mail thieves Or if there was another reason why I wouldn't have received my notification After we go back and forth a bit

[00:39:11] He goes on to say that I have a citation out and can either pay it or serve jail time Let me go ahead and preface this by saying that I'm a big rule follower. I Was a student athlete from childhood through college

[00:39:26] Rules were ingrained in my being I do not like to be in trouble ever and have always Had a hard time when I get in trouble He says I have three options one

[00:39:39] Hang up the phone now, and it would be taken as non-compliant and I would have a warrant out for my arrest to Come to the sheriff's office and be put in a holding cell until the proper paperwork went through to clear my name three Pay the $900 fine

[00:40:01] Now I'm panicking what the hell this is insane all of this for missing jury duty He says that he can see that I have a clean record So he's acting very apologetic that this is happening to me

[00:40:14] But he says that he will try and help as best as he can At this point my husband has woken up from his couch nap Since he's heard me talking about spending $900 and has come to the doorway of the office to listen in

[00:40:30] Now here's where all of the red flags really start coming into play. I Obviously didn't want to go to jail. So option three is sounding like my best bet He says that to pay the fine. I have to go to this specific

[00:40:44] Federal kiosk in town and then he gives me the address He says that it's cash only and that I will be given a receipt after payment and the receipt is What I turn into the sheriff's office. I Know what you're thinking. This is a scam

[00:41:02] While my gut was telling me something was off. I was still on the fence. I mean, this is a real cop I researched him before I even called him back

[00:41:12] Trying to wrap my head around this. I tell him that my husband will be joining me on this trip His demeanor changes a bit second red flag He covers by saying that this federal case is confidential and I'm not allowed to discuss the case with anyone else

[00:41:32] while odd I Guess it made sense to me I say that I'm uncomfortable going to this place alone and ask for a deputy to follow me since my husband can't join me He says he can't do that either

[00:41:45] That's when I'm really starting to push back and ask questions He starts to get angry My fast-acting husband gets a hold of our family friend who is a lawyer and starts filling her in

[00:41:58] Meanwhile, I'm still on the phone with this guy and trying to mouth words to my husband He catches on and keeps warning me that he's losing patience and is taking actions or lack thereof as non-compliant

[00:42:14] Trying to stay calm. I try to reason with him that a woman going alone to an unknown location is very sketchy And ask if there was any other way He can hear my husband talking to me and shouts

[00:42:27] Your boyfriend is going to fuck this whole thing up for you. That's it. I've lost my patience. I can hear some muttering in the background. I hear him say yeah, go pick her up Talks about my height my age says that I'm female Then repeats my street address

[00:42:46] Now I'm full-blown panicking I scream at him to wait as I have him on speaker and my lawyer on speaker on my husband's phone She asks him for his badge number. He gives it to her

[00:42:58] She asks if he has a warrant and he says no she asks if he has a detainment order He says yes Meanwhile, I can still hear all of this muttering and movement on his end Still giving orders to some men to come and get me

[00:43:16] She tells me to hang up with him. So I do She then in her serious southern no bullshit tone tells us to get to her house now We peel out of our house and race to hers going through backroads Just a minutes away from her house

[00:43:34] She calls to tell us that she had called the sheriff's office and found out that he's a fraud and he's been using this scam recently in our area Still very shaken up. We don't go home for a while. I Call an officer

[00:43:47] I'm friends with in our town and she tells me that he's been doing this for years and they haven't been able to catch him She advises me not to take the same route home for a while just in case

[00:43:59] After I calmed down a bit I remember the address that he gave me for this bullshit kiosk I look it up and it's not a kiosk It's a random dirt plot of land just out of sight from the road.

[00:44:14] I immediately realized that not only was this going to be a robbery but possibly a kidnapping as well The thought still gives me chills. I kick myself when I retell this story because when I say it out loud The red flags are obvious

[00:44:29] But you have to remember this guy did his homework He had an answer for everything and all his answers made just enough sense for me to stay the slightest bit convinced I'm a teacher and I'm well known in my town

[00:44:43] So going to jail would ruin me and he played right into that scare tactic with me I'm thankful for my fast-acting husband and our family friend for keeping me safe that day. I don't even want to think of what could have happened if I went to that address

[00:45:01] So to the asshole impersonating a cop to try and lure me to an unknown location I hope that I and all the others you prey on never meet you

[00:45:16] Don't forget to stick around after the music if you're a patron for your extended ad-free version of this week's episode If you'd like to get access head over to patreon.com forward slash let's not meet podcast to sign up today

[00:45:37] This week you have heard he held a gun to my head by a listener that asked to remain anonymous the station wagon by Heather Lee birthday night by a nuke

[00:45:48] being a good Samaritan almost put me and my little girl in danger by a listener that asked to remain anonymous and finally Imposter cop by Megan all of the stories you've heard this week were narrated and produced with the permission of their respective authors

[00:46:05] Let's not meet a true horror podcast is not associated with reddit or any other message boards online And as always if you have a story to share make sure you send it to let's not meet stories at gmail.com

[00:46:17] And don't forget to check out the new episodes of my other podcasts odd trails and the old-time Radiocast at cryptic County podcasts calm or wherever you get your podcasts

[00:46:28] And if you want to donate to help us get our TV pilot made we still have some time left on the Indiegogo Check that out at let's not meet tv.com

[00:46:37] You can get access to all kinds of great perks depending on what tier you choose to donate at I want to give a Special shout out and thanks to Mary for donating at the associate producer credit tier

[00:46:48] It was a huge donation we met at the Midsummer scream horror convention just last week We hung out after the show and chatted about the TV pilot She was really excited and wanted to help out any way that she could and we're very thankful for it

[00:47:02] I just wanted to extend our gratitude from everyone that's working on the pilot We're excited to be working with you on this and one last time if you want to donate that's let's not meet

[00:47:10] TV.com or just follow the link in the show notes. I'll see y'all next week for a brand new episode of let's not meet stay safe It was 1991 and it was a hot summer evening in Midtown Memphis. I Was a female in my early 20s at the time

[00:48:00] Meeting some friends at a local