Counties Manukau Police have arrested one person in a bizarre incident when carrying out patrols in an unmarked vehicle last night.
Inspector Kerry Watson said officers on duty noticed a station wagon following them equipped with a flashing bar of red and blue lights - a typical Police signal for the vehicle in front of them to pull over to the side of the road.
"Our officers were perplexed and quickly clocked the car was not Police-official.
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."
However, real officers caught up with them a short distance away, where they were arrested without incident.
A 38-year-old man will appear in the Manukau District Court on 24 December on charges of impersonating a Police officer and excess breath alcohol.
"The offender was impersonating Police, and to boot, was over twice the limit for breath alcohol. It's bad enough that this person thought it was ok to impersonate a Police car. It's even worse to see impaired and dangerous driving," said Inspector Watson.
Impersonating Police or representing a vehicle as a Police vehicle is an offence under the Policing Act 2008.
Remember, if you see suspicious or criminal activity, call 111 if its an emergency, and 105 if its after the fact.
