The Hancock County Sheriff’s Department now has a set of identical twins in Anthony, left, and Aaron Forshey. They are now both merit deputies. Thursday, Feb. 17, 2022.
Tom Russo| Daily Reporter
HANCOCK COUNTY — They’re not exactly joined at the hip, but identical twins Anthony and Aaron Forshey are best friends. From playing football, basketball and running track together while growing up in Knightstown to heading to the same college town, Muncie, the 30-year-old brothers are pretty much inseparable.
The two have once again taken the same path in life. This time, it’s with their careers. Both brothers are now official merit deputies for the Hancock County Sheriff’s Department. Aaron has been a merit deputy since 2019 after joining the department’s jail staff in 2015, and Anthony was officially sworn as a merit deputy Monday, Feb. 14.
“It’s pretty exciting because I know he’s been trying to get on board for the past couple of years, and I’m glad it finally happened,” Aaron said.
After completing interdepartmental field training, Anthony will attend and graduate from the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy then continue patrolling the county like his brother, Aaron.
“I think it’s going to be great,” Anthony said. “I’m glad we’re with the same department.”
Both brothers say they enjoy community service and that their parents have always encouraged them to get involved in the community they lived in. Getting into law enforcement seemed like a good fit, they said.
Sheriff Brad Burkhart always has an eye out for a good deputy — someone willing to serve. He has often looked at a deputy like Aaron and wished he had another just like him. In this case, there was another Forshey. Burkhart said he was thrilled when he heard Anthony was interested in joining the team.
While they’re both considered to be hard working, dedicated public servants, Burkhart said there is one problem.
“You can’t tell them apart,” Burkhart said. “When they were little, we heard their mom had to make them wear different shoe strings so she could tell them apart.”
As far as Burkhart is concerned, that’s a good thing because he’s been pleased with the work Aaron has done as a merit deputy and he knows Anthony will work just as hard.
“Aaron started for us in the jail working since 2015, and he did a great job, so we brought him over to road and now we’ve got Anthony, so that’s kind of a cool thing,” Burkhart said.
One thing Burkhart has noticed about the brothers is they have a really strong bond. Getting a chance to serve in the same department will be a good thing for the two, Burkhart said.
Anthony, who is 15 minutes older than Aaron, will follow his little brother’s footsteps and do a little work at the county jail, but only for a month before getting a full patrol shift in March. Aaron, who worked at the county jail for several years before becoming a merit deputy in 2019, works on the overnight road patrol shift while Anthony will work a different road shift.
Regardless of who came first, there is one thing the brothers know — They always seem to end up at the same place.
“I moved to Greenfield first about five or six years ago, and then Aaron moved to Greenfield shortly after, and now here we are working together,” Anthony said. “We’ve always enjoyed working and being together.”
They also like to hang out together and, like most brothers, they’re competitive.
“We like to do this CrossFit competition,” Aaron said. “It’s a good way of competing against each other since we don’t play sports anymore.”
When asked who is the better athlete, Aaron said Anthony is better at the cardio work, but that he is stronger.
As for work, Anthony had some other options to join another police force in the state, but seeing how much Aaron enjoys working for the Sheriff and getting a chance to join Aaron was something he could not pass up.
“It was just meant to be,” Anthony said. “I did some ride-along shifts in the county and got to know some of the other deputies here, so it just seemed like the right fit for me.”
Despite their similarities, Anthony said they are different, noting his big brother is a little more reserved and isn’t as outgoing as he is. Burkhart noted because the brothers are so close to each other, including looking and dressing alike due to the job, he will not have them work the same shifts for their own good.
“There are a lot of psychological issues that could come up if we had them on the same shift, so we’ve got to mindful of that,” Burkhart said.
The brothers were also thinking about their parents who Aaron said will now worry even more with both of them being law enforcement officers, but the two have assured their mom and dad they will be smart, safe and well-trained to protect themselves and the community.
When asked if the brothers will ever play jokes on their fellow deputies and the Sheriff, Anthony admitted it’s already been fun because people at the department get them confused all the time. But, like any good boss, Burkhart did a little deep investigating on the brothers. He went straight to their mom, who told him there is one way to tell them apart. Anthony has a small red mole on his cheek that helped her keep them straight.
“Other than that, unless they’re wearing different shoelaces, it’s going to be rough to tell them apart,” Burkhart said with a laugh.
