Man with Awaiting Extraditable Charge in California Allegedly Gives Police 3-Different Names Before Arrest in Murfreesboro

MURFREESBORO, TN - A man who was pulled over for a minor traffic infraction apparently identified himself as three different people, when questioned by a Murfreesboro Police Officer during the traffic stop, according to a police report.

Evidently, the suspect was wanted by the long arm of the law in California for a violation of probation charge. The original charge that landed the driver in hot water on the West Coast was reported to be a burglary conviction. The patient police officer gave the suspect multiple chances to reveal his real name, which he eventually did - - after he was placed in handcuffs.

The reason the driver was originally pulled over, was because the suspect failed to come to a complete stop before turning onto Old Fort Parkway, according to an arrest report filed by the MPD. The minor traffic violation was witnessed by the Murfreesboro Police Officer who pulled the subject over in the Motel 6 parking lot on Chaffin Place.

When the officer first asked the culprit for his name, the suspect allegedly failed to tell the officer his real name and identified himself as "James L." To make the situation more curious, the man handed the officer a debit card with the name James L. on it, as opposed to handing the officer a driver’s license (WGNS is not releasing the last name of James L. to protect his identity as he was one of two identity theft victims in this case). The suspect allegedly told the officer he did not have his ID/Drivers License with him, which is why he handed the officer the debit card with the name of James L. on it. The subject also gave the officer a date of birth that turned out to be fictitious.

According to authorities, the officer attempted to locate the subjects name and date of birth in their computer database, but the search reveled nothing. The helpful officer then asked if he had a social security number. As luck would have it, the social security number he gave to police actually returned to a James L., the same name on the debit card. There were two small problems though - - One glaring difference between James L. was that he was 6-foot 2-inches tall and the suspect was only 5-foot 7-inches tall.

The police report also pointed out another small and perhaps most striking issue... James L. was listed as a white male while the subject in the car appeared to be a black male – which set-off a few alarms for the officer. At that point the MPD officer again asked the subject for his real name.

Giving the man another chance to redeem himself, the officer waited for the subject to reveal his real name and date of birth. Without a hesitation, the man said his name was Michael A., according to the local police report. The driver then provided a date of birth for Michael (WGNS is not releasing the last name of Michael A. to protect his identity as he too appears to have been a victim of identity theft in this case). When the officer tried to verify Michael A’s name, more problems arose.

The officer returned to the stopped vehicle and told the unknown driver that Michael was arrested last year and proceeded to ask the man what he was arrested for? However, the man told the officer he had no recollection of an arrest last year. This equaled more questions.

Suspects Real Name - As a result of the confusion to provide the officer with his actual name, the subject was detained. After the handcuffs went on – the suspect suddenly recalled his real name and told the officer he was 40-year-old Lordell Jones.

Mr. Jones was charged with identity theft and being a fugitive from justice, according to a Murfreesboro Police Arrest Report. Jones is facing extradition to California where he has a Violation of Probation charge. The charge surrounds a previous burglary charge, according to the report obtained by WGNS.

As of Tuesday, May 9th, Jones has not been extradited. He remains behind bars at the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center, as of Tuesday afternoon, May 9, 2023. Jones was last detained in California at the Department of Corrections. There, he was booked into custody on June 20, 2019 and later paroled on April 27, 2023

MPD CASE: 23-0007643

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