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Man accused of impersonating officer arrested in Pierce County, WA
Dashcam video shows the moment a Key Peninsula deputy pulled over a driver for impersonating a law enforcement officer.
KEY PENINSULA, Wash. - The Pierce County Sheriff's Office says dashcam video shows the moment a Key Peninsula deputy pulled over a driver for impersonating a law enforcement officer.
"He had noticed this vehicle in a parking lot with some blue flashing lights," said Pierce County Sheriff's Office spokesperson Carly Cappetto.
The backstory:
The deputy first gave the 24-year-old a warning, telling him he could be arrested.
"It was concerning enough for that deputy to contact the driver and inform him he wasn’t able to drive with those flashing blue lights on the main road," said Cappetto.
That warning appeared to go unheeded.
"About 15 minutes later, that same off-duty deputy was driving home again, and saw that same driver, and same vehicle, using the blue flashing lights on the main road," said Cappetto.
She says the deputy reported that a driver who was being followed by the suspect with the blue lights was yielding and pulling over.
"If you see the impersonating vehicle, make a right-hand turn into a driveway following another vehicle. Who is going very slow, and that vehicle in front seems to be kind of confused, like the driver wasn’t sure if it should pull over or not," said Cappetto.
This time, there wouldn't be a warning. The deputy swooped in and turned on his lights and pulled behind the vehicle with his blue lights flashing. The vehicles stopped in a restaurant parking lot in Key Peninsula.
Local perspective:
This case comes on the heels of two other cases, one in which Bremerton Police say they arrested Michael Scaletta-Teates after he showed up at a police scene dressed as an officer with a fake Edmonds badge. He pleaded not guilty in court and the case is headed to trial.
In Burien, the King County Sheriff's Office says deputies arrested a man after he was accused of walking up to a car and showing a fake badge, threatening a person with a BB gun.
"We have to announce ourselves we are police, let them know they are being audio or video recorded. We encourage them to call 911 and confirm we are on a traffic stop with them and verify," said Cappetto.
She says the vehicle he was driving has been taken in for evidence and investigators are waiting on a search warrant to comb through it.
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The Source: Information in this story came from the Pierce County Sheriff's Office and FOX 13 Seattle reporting.