Paterson Man Purchases $10 Sheriff’s Badge

Law enforcement officials say a Paterson man arrested during a motor vehicle stop over the weekend was found to be carrying a Passaic County Sheriff's badge.

The Record of Woodland Park reports http://bit.ly/TWHMQ3 that Benicio Morales Jr., told police he'd purchased the badge for $10 in Garret Mountain Reservation in Woodland Park.

It's not clear if Morales has a lawyer.

Sheriff's department Spokesman Bill Maer tells the newspaper that Morales was carrying an older badge.

Passaic County Sheriff Richard Berdnik announced last week that officers in his department have new badges with internal tracking numbers and special dye to prevent them from being easily reproduced.

Berdnik says the department used $65,000 in drug forfeiture money to purchase the new badges.