Matt Pitt, shown here in his 2012 Shelby County mugshot, has now been charged by Jefferson County Sheriff's officials for the same thing.

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Alabama - Evangelist Matt Pitt, founder of The Basement youth service, once again has been charged with impersonating an officer.

The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office announced the felony charge today against 30-year-old Pitt. He is not yet in custody, but is expected to surrender when he returns from an out of town trip, said Chief Deputy Randy Christian.

Pitt in September 2012 pleaded guilty in Shelby County on a similar charge. He remains on probation as part of that guilty plea.

In the most recent case, authorities said deputies on June 15 were called to the 5200 block of Falling Creek Lane to investigate a report of a man impersonating a law enforcement officer. Christian said deputies were told there was a suspicious vehicle sitting in front of a home two hours earlier and the resident had seen people going back and forth between the vehicle and a nearby wooded area.

The caller said he went to investigate and discovered a rifle hidden at the edge of the woods. The people he had seen earlier were nowhere around the rife. He called authorities to report the discovery of the gun.

While he was waiting for sheriff's officials to respond, two men drove up on ATV's. One of them retrieved the rifle, Christian said.

The man told them he had called the sheriff's office and asked what they were doing. Neither, he said, was able to provide a satisfactory answer, Christian said.

At that point, the witness said, Pitt retrieved the rifle and identified himself as a law enforcement officer. The pair then drove off on the ATVs. The man didn't say anything else to him because he believed they were law enforcement officers.

The deputy called to investigate the weapon was suspicious of the story the men told the witness. The case was forwarded to the sheriff's office Criminal Division for investigation. On Wednesday, investigators presented the case to the Jefferson County District Attorney's Office and an arrest warrant was issued.

Sheriff's deputies attempted to let Pitt know about the outstanding warrant and were told he was out of town. It wasn't immediately clear when he is expected to return. His bond is set at $15,000.

Pitt was arrested May 12, 2012 and charged with a felony for impersonating a peace officer after Calera police said he was flashing blue lights to pull over cars on Interstate 65. Pitt was driving to Destin after midnight when Calera police stopped him.

He pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor and was sentenced to a year in jail, but that was suspended. He was put on two-years of unsupervised probation and ordered to pay a $1,000 fine.

Pitt started The Basement in the basement of his home in 2004 and it grew into one of the largest youth ministries in the country. It meets monthly and has met at a variety of venues including Boutwell Auditorium, Bartow Arena and the BJCC.