Police officers in Auckland, New Zealand, were in for a bizarre surprise. They were patrolling in an unmarked vehicle when red and blue lights suddenly flashed in their rearview mirror. The problem was that no other units were nearby. And the car behind them was definitely not a police vehicle.

Inspector Kerry Watson explained, “Our officers were perplexed and quickly clocked the car was not police-official.”

The vehicle behind them was a standard station wagon that someone had illegally fitted with police lights. Even worse, the driver attempted to conduct an illegal traffic stop. The irony escalated when the impersonator realized the vehicle they were pulling over belonged to actual police.

“It took a few moments for the impersonator to realise the vehicle they were signalling to pull over was police, and they quickly tried to evade the area to avoid being caught.”

Impersonator tries to flee, then makes things worse

Police were not amused by the suspect’s attempt to escape. Officers quickly caught up with the station wagon and initiated a real traffic stop.

The suspect made one smart decision by not resisting arrest. But officers soon uncovered another serious issue. The police impersonator was drunk and blew more than twice New Zealand’s legal blood-alcohol limit.

Watson said, “It’s bad enough that this person thought it was okay to impersonate a police car. It’s even worse to see impaired and dangerous driving.”

Authorities have not released the suspect’s name. A 38-year-old man is scheduled to appear in Manukau District Court. He faces charges including impersonating a police officer and excess breath alcohol.