Tips pour in on Florida mystery man as cops probe 'deeper, darker story'

Published August 07, 2012
FoxNews.com



  • FILE: This photo shows Roy Antigua. (New Port Richey police department)

  • Aug. 6, 2012: A stash of fake IDs and uniforms is shown. (MyFoxTampaBay.com)

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Hundreds of tips have come in to Florida police about the mysterious man who had a closet full of uniforms and a cache of IDs enabling him to pass for everything from an astronaut to a CIA agent.

But authorities in New Port Richey don't know if Roy Antigua just liked to play dress-up, or if "there is a deeper, darker story," Police Chief James Steffens told FoxNews.com.
"We still don't know if this was fantasy gone wild, or if there is a deeper, darker story."
- Police Chief James Steffens

"We have gotten a deluge of tips and calls from concerned citizens," Steffens said. "We're working through those now and I'm optimistic that we're going to get more information on who Roy Antigua is."

More than a hundred emails and phone calls have come in to detectives from members of the public who had encounters with the 53-year-old Cuba native, much like one Steffens himself had when Antigua sat next to him at a Memorial Day event and introduced himself as a Coast Guard lieutenant commander.

"I had experience myself with this individual," Steffens said. "We still don't know if this was fantasy gone wild, or if there is a deeper, darker story. But a line has definitely been crossed and we need the public's help in piecing together what he has done and whether he has engaged in criminal activity."

Antigua was arrested for driving without a license and a parole violation after the traffic stop, but was further investigated once officers noticed a fake ID. That's when police found uniforms from NASA, U.S. Customs, the Navy, the CIA, the Secret Service and Homeland Security. He also had dozens of military medals, a flight helmet and flight instructor badge and a Boy Scout troop leader uniform.

He is now being held without bail, and has told police his masquerade had "gotten out of hand," according to Steffens.

"It's actually scary. You see these Boy Scout uniforms, who knows if he's been around young children and what his intentions were," an official tells MyFoxTampaBay.com.

He also had a bag filled with doctor's equipment and a physician's assistant's badge and, chillingly, a photo of himself in scrubs holding a newborn.

Now authorities are saying the best-case scenario is that Antigua is someone who has stockpiled his collection for play or dress-up.

"Is he really a threat or is he someone who is living a very involved fantasy life?" Steffens said, according to The Tampa Bay Times.

Steffens tells the paper he can vouch that Antigua impersonated a Coast Guard officer at least once. He recognized Antigua from a Memorial Day event at a cemetery, where he says Antigua introduced himself as a Coast Guard Lieutenant Commander and was wearing a uniform. He then sat next to the police chief in a special section for officials.

"Everybody around there thought that he was the real deal," Steffens told the paper.

The only ID that ended up being real was an identification card saying Antigua was a member of the Coast Guard Auxiliary in Miami, a volunteer unit, but Antigua was kicked out in 2011 after being arrested on a grand theft charge. Antigua is a licensed respiratory care practitioner, according to the Department of Health, but detectives aren't sure if or where he was employed.

Steffens asks anyone who might have dealt with Antigua to call his agency at (727) 841-4550. He says authorities are investigating his possible ties to federal law enforcement agencies, the military, hospitals and other groups.

"You don't have this collection just to keep it in your house and look in the mirror," Steffens told The Tampa Bay Times.




Tips pour in on Florida mystery man as cops probe 'deeper, darker story' | Fox News