A store security guard who told police he was a counter-terrorism agent with the Department of Homeland Security was arraigned Wednesday on charges of impersonating an agent and carrying a loaded firearm. He pleaded not guilty to all the counts.
Orange police arrested Kevin Javaheri, 49, in late February after they approached him in a strip mall restaurant where he was sitting with a loaded gun in a shoulder holster, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Keith Bogardus.
A photo ID attached to the holster said Javaheri was a DHS agent assigned to "Counter Terrorism Intelligence Operations." He also had hundreds of fake business cards that identified him as a DHS agent.
Authorities do not know whether Javaheri used the ID or the business cards to get access to secure places, Bogardus said, but he had claimed to be a DHS agent at least once before.
In September, Javaheri told Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies that he was a DHS agent after filing a report that his car had been burglarized. Although deputies found it suspicious and took a report, they did not charge him at the time, Bogardus said.
Javaheri is a security guard who has worked at several stores, including Burberry and AutoZone, in Southern California, Bogardus said.
According to state records, Javaheri has a firearm permit that allows him to carry a weapon in his job as a guard. He is not allowed to carry a loaded weapon off-duty, Bogardus said.
"He was not working in his capacity as a security guard at the time," he said.
Javaheri faces one felony count of possession of a forged government seal and misdemeanors for carrying a loaded firearm in public and misrepresenting himself as a peace officer, with a sentencing enhancement for impersonating a peace officer during the commission of a felony.
After the hearing, Javaheri posted a $25,000 bond and was released. He is expected back in court July 9.
If convicted, he will face a maximum sentence of four years.
