Barrie woman talks about her strange encounter with a man posing as a cop

A Barrie woman who encountered a man posing as a cop at an accident scene is grateful she followed her instincts and refused to get into his car when he offered.

"I got in a car crash just outside of Barrie Burger," Cady Matheson stated, "a nice woman took me over to [the] Barrie Burger parking lot, and she helped me and sat with me."

Matheson said moments after her vehicle was hit by a truck last week, a man who police said claimed to be a provincial investigator approached her.

"There was a kind of a grey car sitting in the parking lot, and he came over to us and asked me if I wanted to sit in his car because it was hot out and he had air conditioning. I said no," she recalled.

"He asked me again, and then I said no again, and he drove away about five minutes later."

Police say this is one of two suspicious incidents with men falsely identifying as authorities in recent weeks.

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Police say a Good Samaritan told officers the man who approached Matheson had quickly shown a badge that didn't have a number or rank on it.

A week prior, on June 18, police say another man wearing green tactical-like pants and tall black boots driving an older model police car with OPP lettering pulled an individual over in a nearby church parking lot.

Police confirmed this incident didn't involve anyone from the OPP, nor did provincial police have any calls for service stemming from the person who was pulled over.

In her case, Matheson said she's thankful there was a woman to help her and that she had the sense to question the situation.

"[It's] scary to know that there's a man like that out on the streets of Barrie. Hopefully, they find him soon and that no one is able to get lured into his car," she said.

Matheson said if anyone else is approached, she hopes they know not to get into a stranger's vehicle, whether it's a man or woman.

"It's always good to just stay on your own, especially if you're vulnerable, especially in Barrie as well, because it's around this area, it's high in trafficking. So just always stay out of someone's car if they ask you to come in."

Police continue to investigate both incidents and say they have not received any additional reports regarding either impersonation incident.

So far, there have been no arrests, and no suspects have been named.