- Out of all the things she could’ve impersonated, an FBI agent probably wasn’t the smartest choice.
It’s never a dull day at Waffle House. When a busjacker isn’t driving by to drop off a passenger, you can be sure something bizarre is going down.
The staff might, for example, find someone impersonating a federal agent showing up at the restaurant’s doorstep.
That’s what one Waffle House in Tennessee recently had to deal with. According to an arrest warrant, a 60-year-old local woman appeared at the restaurant one morning.
She allegedly claimed to be an FBI agent. The woman stated she had evidence the establishment was involved in drug trafficking and she was there to shut it down.
Faced with the bizarre claims, the Waffle House staff called a genuine, bona fide law enforcement officer. Unfortunately for our wannabe FBI agent, the policeman immediately recognized her.
Apparently, the woman has a history of impersonating various people. She definitely wasn’t an FBI agent, though, so the police officer arrested her and took her to jail.
We don’t know what the woman’s beef with Waffle House is. We’re sure there would’ve been better ways to go about resolving it, though.
The Wannabe Agent
The unusual impersonation incident happened at the only Waffle House in Madisonville, Tennessee. The restaurant is by US 411 next to a small shopping center with a grocery store and a couple of other eateries.
We’re saying that just to establish that the place isn’t smack-dab in the middle of a residential area, which might’ve made more sense in the context of this story.
According to media reports, the strange events started early in the morning of February 11. Around 8 a.m., the Madisonville Police Department (MPD) received a call about an impersonator at the Waffle House.
Officer Andy Cline got sent to check out what on earth was going on. When he arrived at the restaurant and got out of his car, one of the Waffle House employees approached Cline.
The staff member told the officer that earlier in the morning, an unknown woman had shown up at the restaurant. The woman had told the staff that she was an FBI agent and she was there to shut the place down.
According to the woman, she had evidence that this Waffle House was selling drugs out of its backdoor.
Faced with the outlandish accusations, the Waffle House employee asked the woman to show some official identification. She reportedly whipped out a brown notebook with a Tennessee badge but refused to let the staff take a closer look at it. She also wouldn’t produce an actual FBI ID document.
At that point, the Waffle House staff decided it was time to call the police.
Old Acquaintance
The staff member took Officer Cline inside, where the woman was still waiting. He began talking to her and she repeated her previous story of being an FBI who had come to shut the restaurant down.
Cline didn’t buy the woman’s tall tale, however. That’s probably because he knew exactly who she was.
He recognized the woman as Kimberly Michelle Gonzalez. The 60-year-old local resident appears to have a habit of claiming she’s something she’s not.
After all, Cline had dealt with her similar antics in the past.
To confirm what had happened, Cline also talked to another witness at the restaurant. They confirmed that Gonzalez had claimed to be an FBI agent.
In case you weren’t aware, impersonating federal officers is a criminal act. So, without further ado, Cline arrested Gonzalez, who fortunately for everyone involved went along without kicking up a fuss.
According to records from Monroe County, Gonzalez has been charged with criminal impersonation. She was also held in Monroe County Jail on a $1,000 bail, but records showed she left the jail by the following day.
Despite our best efforts, we couldn’t find any reports on what Gonzalez was actually trying to achieve. Sure, she clearly wanted the Waffle House gone, but the big question is why.
We can probably safely assume there was no real drug trade going on as we feel Cline might’ve arrested a couple of other people as well. Perhaps we’ll just have to file this under “we’ll never know.”