GunPal CEO Arrested for Impersonating a Police Officer

A 22 year old woman gets pulled over by an unmarked vehicle (2001 silver BMW).  A man not wearing a uniform approached her car and flashed what appeared to be a badge and then asked her for identification.  The woman got suspicious and asked the man to have a marked vehicle respond.  The man became uncomfortable and drove away.  The woman called the police.

Police identify 29 year old Benjamin Phillip Canon as a suspect after the woman driving identified him as the man who pulled her over.  Police set up surveillance on Cannon and arrest him at his home and allegedly find a police scanner, a strobe light, handcuffs, and a siren inside his car.  Cannon was booked in to jail, and has since posted $10000 bail.

Source : ABC News – HERE

There is an outpouring of support for him on Calguns.net, where he is treasurer and director.  In the first post on that thread Mr. Canon also claims the allegations are untrue and that he hopes this will all blow over quickly.

My Thoughts:

  • I hope he is innocent, but if he isn’t then I hope he gets all he deserves.  We definitely don’t need creeps pulling women over and pretending to be cops.
  • Who did he piss off to end up in a police lineup?  I find it odd that a business man would be on the sheriff’s violent crimes unit radar.  Did he have any sort of past run ins with the law for something serious?
  • Although some members on Calguns would disagree, it seems to me that having all that police related equipment in his car is not going to help his claim of innocence.  I agree though, just like the media often does.. those alleged items they said Canon possessed could actually be other everyday items that they just embellished the name on to make the story more interesting.

Comments

22 responses to “GunPal CEO Arrested for Impersonating a Police Officer”

  1. jerry coe Avatar

    I don’t know the man, or anything about this case, but…

    Let us not fail to consider another possibility: it is just barely possible that someone bore false witness. Were there any other witnesses? Do we know the identity of the accuser? Have there been any similar incidents?

    Does she have any known political associations? If this is a political dirty trick, it would take little effort to get a license plate number and a description of the target, and a simple walk-by could see the police radio and stuff, which would suggest an angle of attack.

    If it is just one woman’s unsupported word, I doubt that a jury would convict, but the distraction could keep him out of action during the run-up to this fall’s election.

  2. Weird story. I wish there was more information than the little bit published in that story. Makes me wonder how they arrived at Mr. Cannon as a suspect. Did she identify the car as a silver BMW? Had he been accused of something similar in the past or did they have other reasons to suspect him? Is it just a coincidence that he happened to have a strobe light and police siren in his car? What would be the legitimate purpose of having those in your vehicle? Or at least what was his excuse?

    This story leaves me with a lot of questions. Sounds interesting though; I hope more information comes available.

  3. […] of Everyday, No Days Off.) send it […]

  4. Darren S. Avatar

    I know Ben Cannon and he’d never do anything like this. Anybody who knows him knows this is absolute BS. With all the guy has done for the second amendment between CalGuns and GUNPAL it’s no surprise that he has some enemies gunning for him out there.

    1. The same could be said for Ted Bundy. Innocent until proven guilty though so let’s see where it goes.

  5. Guilty or not, this sounds like a good episode of “Law and Order.” I can imagine there are some people who would like nothing more than to see his name dragged through the mud. So it’s within the realm of possibility that this story was concocted by someone. However, it doesn’t bode well for the prima facie appearance of things that the police found a strobe light and siren in his vehicle (I’m assuming it was the type that was used to pull over the vehicle, otherwise it wouldn’t have been relevant to the story). That doesn’t seem like something that anyone would have a need for, or good reason to have in their car. I also can’t help but think that the words, “I know him, he could never do something like that” have been uttered countless times in the past by friends and family of serial killers, rapists, child molesters, drug dealers, etc. etc.

    I hope we can follow this story on here as it develops further. If this has been a fabrication on the part of the alleged victim or the police department, when the truth is discovered I think it could be a huge victory for California gun proponents to be able to show the public that there are people out there who would trample on the other freedoms of the constitution in order to help suppress 2nd amendment rights. And if it’s discovered to be true, it looks like there are quite a few people on those gun boards who are going to have the taste of foot in their mouths for a very long time.

    I guess only time will tell… And I hope the writers at NBC’s “Law and Order” are paying attention, although I’ll watch any new episode as long as assistant district attorney Connie Rubirosa is involved!

  6. The incident with the girl happened 2/2. He was put under surveillance and not arrested until 2/11? Something tells me something must have happened in those 9 days to give the police reason to arrest him.

    Interesting news find.

  7. Maybe Mr. Cannon needs to come up with:

    BAILPAL – The next generation of online bail payment processing

    1. Admin (Mike) Avatar
      Admin (Mike)

      haha yea, and the website would have no mention of jail or bail on it, and no pictures relating to either. ( Referring to how I criticized GunPal for not having any mentions of guns or gun pictures on their website. https://www.everydaynodaysoff.com/2009/10/30/gunpal/ )

  8. Remember that news reports like this are written by the cops feeding the info to the reporter. His job is easy if he just reports what he’s fed.

    Also remember that most reporters are technically incompetent in a variety of areas.

    1. $10K bail is way low if they really thought they had something. That kinda bail (for most folks =
    $1K to get outta jail, I believe Ben used his black AmEx card to avoid paying bondsman) is just one
    step above O.R.

    2. No charges filed yet. If there were something, you’d figure it’d’ve hit by Monday.

    3. The “scanner” was not a police scanner – it was a licensed 2-way business band radio for Ben’s other biz.

    4. No ‘police lights’ were found in an inventory of Ben’s car. Ben’s car has unusual low-to-ground road lighting.
    “Siren”? Um, burglar alarm everyone has.

    5. Ben indeed has had numerous encounters with LE in that area for driving matters and is not too popular
    with some cops there.

    6. Ben would certainly NOT like to be perceived as a cop – that’s kinda a social step-down. Also his Facebook
    page, demeanor and human interaction skills and relationships with women are far different from that of
    the prototypical $9/hr security guard with a repainted used Crown Victoria and an LE “stranger ranger” fetish.

    7. The woman involved making allegations may be one who has tried to contact, multiple times, Ben in relation
    to GunPal work, business, etc.

    Hell I used to have a roll of FlexCuffs in my old truck toolbox way back from the Rodney Riots days in the 90s.
    There’s ammo floating around in it, plus spent brass. I also have some ham gear that looks like a scanner and
    does cover some scanner frequencies. That’s it – I’m a cop wannabe!

    -Bill Wiese

    1. Admin (Mike) Avatar
      Admin (Mike)

      Well hopefully he can go on with his life as usual and put this all behind him as soon as possible, if he is indeed innocent.

    2. blackburn Avatar

      Bill: your following points are either deliberate lies or attempts to deceive:

      #3

      #4

      :)

  9. CASE DISMISSED!!

    As of this morning the case against Ben has been dismissed, as expected.

    And after that, the court clerk turns to Ben & lawyers and said, “I guess I’ll be seeing you in civil court.”

    Ben: “No, you won’t. We’ll be in US District Court.”

    1. Clerk: “Civil court and U.S. district court are not mutually exclusive. District courts hear both criminal and civil cases, so you will see us in civil court, since you are only able to file a civil complaint.”

      Unless he meant that he won’t be filing a lawsuit, but will be in district court on something unrelated!

      1. Digital Bo Avatar
        Digital Bo

        They may be tried in the same physical location, but the magnitude of precedent that will be set is much different. It won’t be a local LE agency with an axe to grind paying a few hundred $K to settle a civil suit out of court. And believe me, with the legal minds Mr. Cannon has to back him up, (many who have argued before the Supreme Court), the agency(ies) involved aren’t going to checkbook their way out of this.

    2. Admin (Mike) Avatar
      Admin (Mike)

      Hey, thanks for the update.. Any link to a story or proof of the dismissal that I can post in a new article for everyone to see?

      1. Journalists seldom report when someone’s name is cleared, but they sure are quick to drag someone through the mud when they are accused.

        The innocent man is posting about this dismissal himself on this forum thread:
        http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/showthread.php?t=280489

        1. Admin (Mike) Avatar
          Admin (Mike)

          Thanks a lot for the link David, I posted the update in a new article and quoted you.

  10. […] Some of you may remember the story I posted back in February about 29 year old GunPal CEO Benjamin Phillip Canon who was arrested for allegedly impersonating a police officer. […]

  11. Steve Z Avatar

    like i said in my other comment this type of thing doesn’t sound like ben’s style however, anyone who knows ben personally or has ever had any sort of business relationship with him can vouch for the fact that he’s more then a little used to telling tall tales (that’s a nice way of saying he’s a liar). he does a great job of misrepresenting himself in business and personally although i can’t picture him flashing a fake badge. who knows, its been a while since i’ve had any dealings with him.

  12. Steve Z Avatar

    Five months have passed since my last post on this subject and the world is looking a little differently at Ben Cannon. No federal lawsuit has been filed regarding his “incident” and his “moral fiber” is splayed out all over the internet for all to see. The stories he tells haven’t changed much. First the evil, anti-gun police were framing him and now the evil anti-gun banks are having their turn. It must be tough being Ben, what with the enemies of the second amendment always conspiring to smite their grandest (and most handsome) adversary.

    I have to say I’m starting to buy into this karma thing.

  13. AS PROMISED…
    THE BEN CANNON INFORMATION HOT LINE – (704) 360-0821

    To anyone having information regarding Ben Cannon:
    If you have information regarding Benjamin Phillip Cannon AKA Ben Cannon or any officers or legal representation of GunPal or GPal Inc, please call (704) 360-0821 and leave a message. You may also call this number to tell about your experiences with any of the above mentioned people or entities. If you choose to leave your personal information you will be contacted by a licensed private investigator who will take your statement.

    To the public:
    I am an NRA Life Member, NRA Training Counselor, Concealed Handgun Permit Instructor, and I am a strong supporter of the 2nd Amendment. My business relies on the prompt payment of my customers, and credit card transaction vendors such at GPal/GunPal. . I do not wish any ill intent to Mr. Cannon or any other representatives of GPal/GunPal. I work hard for my money and I expect to be treated fairly, especially by others who claim to have such a love for this country’s constitution.

    To Ben Cannon:
    If you or one of your representatives are reading this blog, you are welcome to call the number and leave a message as to how I may contact you directly to resolve my issues and others that this posting will likely generate.

    This post can be copied in its entirety and re-posted at will. The original post created on October 17th, 2010 will be located at: https://www.everydaynodaysoff.com/2010/03/16/gunpal-ceo-ben-cannon-case-dismissed/comment-page-1/#comment-17033
    I am not responsible for any re-scripting of this post.