Jonesboro, AR – (JonesboroRightNow.com) – Aug. 11, 2025 – Two people face multiple felony charges after court documents said they posed as Homeland Security agents during a robbery in Jonesboro, with tactical gear and a loaded pistol being found in their vehicle.

According to an affidavit, on Aug. 6, Jonesboro police responded to the 2300 block of Ridgepointe Drive for a robbery in progress. A caller told dispatch a man was at the front door with a gun and a woman was inside the home, claiming the two shouldn’t be there.

When officers arrived, they encountered a woman inside the home, 33-year-old Traneshia Renea Hall, of Southaven, MS, who said she was law enforcement with Homeland Security, showing officers a picture of a Homeland Security certificate on her phone with what she claimed were her agency “credentials.”

Hall told police she was with her friend, 38-year-old Michael Jackson, of Memphis, TN, saying he was also a law enforcement officer and a U.S. Marshal. Jackson drove up to the home and showed officers what he called his “credentials” that identified him as a special agent with Homeland Security.

He also told officers he was “Homeland Security out of Atlanta.” However, officers found that Jackson had a suspended driver’s license.

The affidavit said Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agent Austin Koval and task force officer Jason Chester met Jonesboro police officers at the scene, who told them about their encounters with Hall and Jackson. Koval was provided the ID card of Jackson, which appeared to be in the same style as an official federal Personal Identity Verification card issued to federal employees.

However, Koval could identify the card as fake, with the affidavit noting several elements on the card, such as the employee number, expiration date, and instructions not to detain the cardholder.

A Jonesboro police investigator arrived at the scene with his K-9 partner, Tiger, who alerted to the odor of controlled substances coming from the vehicle Jackson was in. Hall also admitted to being inside the vehicle with Jackson.

Koval and Chester were able to find the following items inside the vehicle:

• A wallet with $580 inside
• A fanny pack containing Glock 17 pistol with one round chambered and 17 rounds in the magazine, and 0.5 grams of marijuana
• A black tactical outer carrier with patches inscribed with “Special Operations” and “Fugitive Apprehension Agent” with handcuffs, a radio, a rifle light, a body camera, and two pistol magazines inside the vest pockets
• A drop holster
• An undershirt with two ballistic plates inside of it that had “U.S.” printed on the back of each plate

In a Mirandized interview, Hall gave Koval and Chester a picture on her phone of a training certificate that had the official U.S. Department of Homeland Security seal to show she was with the agency, claiming she was a special agent and waiting for her badge.

However, the affidavit said that while Hall was showing Koval and Chester her phone, they noticed a text message sent to “husband” saying “stay away,” appearing to have been sent at the same time that Jonesboro police officers arrived at the location.

In a separate Mirandized interview, Jackson also said he was a special agent for Homeland Security. Hall and Jackson were then arrested and taken to the Jonesboro Police Department, where Koval and Chester further questioned them.

During the interviews, Jackson continued to identify himself as a special agent, saying he had been one since May 2024.

The affidavit said he claimed he had different clearance levels and used his position as a special agent to fly armed and carry a firearm in states with strict firearm laws, such as California and New York.

However, when Jackson was shown Koval’s official HSI law enforcement credentials and compared them to Jackson’s, Jackson reversed his claims, saying he never identified himself as a special agent. He added that he received the special agent ID card in the mail and did not make it himself.

The affidavit said Jackson and Hall are not law enforcement, nor are they employed with Homeland Security or any part of the U.S. government.

On Aug. 11, Craighead County District Judge David Boling found probable cause to charge Hall and Jackson with first-degree criminal impersonation and possession of a Schedule VI substance less than four ounces.

Jackson also faces charges of second-degree forgery, driving while a license is canceled, suspended or revoked, and carrying a weapon. His bond was set at $300,000 cash/surety, while Hall’s was set at $250,000 cash/surety.

Both were ordered to have no contact with the victim and wear GPS ankle monitors upon release.

Hall and Jackson are scheduled to be back in court Sept. 30.