Click in the Eyewitness News Story Window above to watch Eileen Frere's report.
The 49-year-old store security guard was arrested in February at a restaurant in Orange after someone in another store noticed him walking through a parking lot carrying a loaded gun on a shoulder holster, and on the holster, a fake badge.
"When law enforcement officers contacted him, he allegedly represented himself as a federal agent of the Department of Homeland Security," said prosecutor Keith Bogardus.
Police allege he was also carrying business cards that falsely identified him as a federal agent, and a search at his Pasadena home turned up about 500 of the same cards.
"Anytime an individual represents or misrepresents himself as a federal officer or any peace officer in particular in conjunction with having a firearm, it's something that the District Attorney's Office takes very seriously," Bogardus said.
Javaheri did not want to speak on camera with Eyewitness News, and his attorney would only say he was carrying a gun because he's a bodyguard, claiming he was leaving a job on his way to lunch.
Javaheri's lawyer said he is licensed to carry a gun, but prosecutors said people licensed to carry firearms can do so under limited conditions.
Prosecutors said there is no evidence to indicate he should have been armed at the time. There's also no explanation why he was allegedly carrying a fake badge.
"It's very bold conduct to represent or misrepresent yourself as a peace officer," Bogardus said.
This may not be the first time Javaheri has done this. Prosecutors allege Javaheri told L.A. County Sheriff's deputies that he worked with the Department of Homeland Security after filing a report that his car had been burglarized last year.
Prosecutors say they want to speak with any witnesses who encountered Javaheri if he represented himself to them as a federal agent. Anyone with information is urged to call the Orange County District Attorney's Office (714) 347-8814.
Javaheri is free after posting $25,000 bail.
