Man once dubbed ‘kid cop’ for posing as Chicago police officer as teen arrested again for impersonating sergeant

A man who has repeatedly been charged with posing as a police officer — at one point earning the nickname “kid cop” for patrolling the city’s streets at age 14 — was arrested again earlier this week in Lisle after impersonating a Chicago police sergeant several times on the Near West Side.

Vincent Richardson, 26, of Lisle, was taken into custody Wednesday in the western suburb after being accused of presenting himself as a sergeant in the 2300 block of West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago police said Thursday. He now faces three counts of false personation of an officer stemming from incidents on Jan. 14, Jan. 27 and Feb. 3.

Richardson grabbed national headlines in 2009, when he walked into the Grand Crossing police district as a 14-year-old and was able to fool officers into letting him walk the streets for five hours before being caught. The incident incensed former Mayor Richard M. Daley, who called for heads to roll in its wake.

Since then, Richardson’s proclivity for posing as police officers has landed him behind bars on two other occasions.

In 2013, Richardson posed as an Englewood District police officer when he asked to purchase a nylon duffel bag, cargo pants and a blue duty shirt at a specialty uniform store in Portage Park. However, the salesman recognized Richardson from the news and called the real cops.

During his arrest, Richardson allegedly tried to level with the officers: “I know what it’s like to be one of you. I respect you because I did it for a day, chasing and helping people. My intentions are never to hurt people, just to help.”

He ultimately got 18 months after pleading guilty.

Then in 2015, Richardson again found himself on the wrong side of the law for posing as law enforcement. A Chicago cop investigating a call of shots fired in Englewood stopped Richardson and another man and noticed they were wearing bulletproof vests and had a police-style radio and what appeared to be firearms — though they were later revealed to be BB guns.

Richardson then admitted that he sometimes worked as a security guard and frequently tried to unlock parked police vehicles hoping to steal belongings. He was again sentenced to 18 months in prison.

Richardson, who was also wanted on a warrant, is expected in court Friday.