Man accused of impersonating Coast Guard, discharging sewage into Lake Michigan

A Traverse City, Michigan, man is accused of impersonating an officer of the U.S. Coast Guard and discharging sewage into Lake Michigan, U.S. attorneys said. 

Brent Alan Tompkins, 52, was indicted on federal charges of false impersonation of a federal officer, unauthorized use of a Coast Guard insignia and discharge of a pollutant into a navigable waterway. 

According to federal prosecutors, Tompkins was indicted after a two-year investigation by the Coast Guard Investigative Service and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources Environmental Investigations Section into allegations that Tompkins discharged pollutants into Lake Michigan at White Shoal Light in Emmet County. 

Investigators say Tompkins used a boat with an insignia that resembled the Coast Guard insignia and represented himself as a Coast Guard officer to a distressed mariner in Emmet County. 

"The public has a right to know when they are dealing with a properly trained public official — and when they are not — especially during a potentially dangerous situation on the water. This is no place for impersonators and wannabes," U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Timothy VerHey said in a statement. 

If convicted, Tompkins faces up to three years in prison and a fine of at least $5,000 per day for allegedly violating the Clean Water Act, according to prosecutors.