Editor’s note, February 13, 2025: The charges against the individual identified in this story were ultimately discharged in January 2022 under the state First Offender Act. The discharge exonerates him of any criminal purpose.
A Sandy Springs man is accused of impersonating a police officer in connection with his alleged assault on a bike rider on the Silver Comet Trail in April.
Alden Adam Martinez was indicted last week on charges of aggravated assault, aggravated battery and impersonating a peace officer in the April 21 assault in Powder Springs, according to Cobb County Superior Court records.
At the time of the incident, Martinez was enrolled in the Sandy Springs Police Department’s 12-week Citizens on Patrol training program. Those volunteers provide assistance with traffic-related incidents, conduct house checks for out-of-town residents and support officers during city-sponsored events.
The indictment alleges Martinez “did falsely hold himself out to be a city of Sandy Springs police officer, with the intent to mislead” another person that he was a member of the force. A city of Sandy Springs spokeswoman told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in April that Martinez was no longer an active member of the training program.
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According to a Powder Springs police report, Martinez said he was riding his bike on the trail and pulled into a building to use the restroom. As he was exiting the building, he “made contact” with another man later identified as the victim. Martinez said the victim allegedly said “[expletive] you, there are [expletive] rules” on the trail.
The alleged victim moved closer to Martinez and continued to scream at him. A woman who witnessed the confrontation stepped between the two men to defuse the situation.
The report notes the victim tried to leave on his bicycle and, according to witnesses, Martinez attacked him from behind. The victim was knocked off his bicycle and Martinez began punching him in the face, the incident report states. He also grabbed the man from behind around his neck while the victim was “gasping for air and screaming that he was having difficulties breathing, according to the report.
An ambulance was called to the scene, and the victim was transported WellStar Cobb Hospital where he was treated for a broken eye socket. Martinez, who was 51 at the time of his arrest, was booked into the Cobb County Jail and was released on a $33,200 bond.
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