June 17 – A 52-year-old Middletown man accused of impersonating a cop allegedly had multiple law enforcement-related items, including a light bar, handcuffs, a New York Police Department emblem, zip ties and more , according to a Springboro Police report.
Saturday around 5:40 p.m., a caller informed 911 dispatchers that a white Chevrolet Tahoe was attempting to ram another vehicle off the road. The Tahoe was last seen traveling eastbound on State Route 73 near the Franklin Walmart.
While checking traffic in the area of West Central Avenue and Sharts Road, Springboro police noticed a white Tahoe that resembled the suspect vehicle and initiated a traffic stop in the Kroger parking lot.
The officer noticed the Tahoe had a light bar on top of the SUV and a thin blue line flag on the tailgate hatch, the report said. The license plate had a blue logo with “Concern for Police Survivors” and “COPS” written on it.
“At that time, I was under the impression that the driver may have been a retired law enforcement officer,” the officer wrote in the report.
When the officer asked the driver if he was a police officer or used the SUV for work, the driver said no.
The officer continued to look around the Tahoe and noticed several items associated with law enforcement, including a set of handcuffs hanging from a spotlight attached to a pillar and a light switch to control overhead lights, the report said.
The driver was asked to step out of the vehicle and told the officer he had a gun, which the officer removed from his hip. There was also a loaded magazine in his shorts pocket.
The officer was able to turn on the Tahoe’s overhead lights and discovered several flashing lights and a light bar that flashed orange, red and white, according to the report. There was a light bar in the windshield, taillights that flashed red, two small light bars on the hatch that flashed red and orange and white near the front wheel wells on both sides of the SUV.
The other person involved in the reported road rage incident subsequently arrived on scene.
The man told police the incident began near state Route 741 near Miamisburg, when the Tahoe allegedly nearly rear-ended the man’s minivan. The driver of the Tahoe allegedly tried to ram the minivan off the road several times and then activated its overhead lights on I-75 South near Austin Landing, the report said.
“No contact was made with the vehicle, but (the driver of the minivan) stated that (the driver of the Tahoe) was definitely trying to get them to pull over as if he was a police officer,” the report said. “(The driver of the Tahoe) admitted that he activated his lights to try to stop (the minivan) but would not explain why.”
The man’s wife and 4- and 6-year-old children were reportedly in the van at the time.
During a search by Tahoe Police, additional items associated with law enforcement were found, including two sets of handcuffs, a Guardian Angel flashlight, radio, light bar, dashboard camera, a yellow traffic control jacket and vest, traffic cones, gloves, road flares, zip ties , duct tape, blue light bar, two notebooks with license plates and locations, a New York Police Department emblem, thin hats and caps with blue lines, and a handcuff key attached to the key ring in the Tahoe’s ignition.
According to the report, the man is not a police officer and not affiliated with any form of law enforcement. He was previously convicted of impersonating a police officer in California and charged with possession/use of tear gas, use of fake government IDs, possession of burglary tools and other crimes.
The Ohio State Highway Patrol Dayton Post was called to respond and is investigating.
According to OSHP, the man was booked into the Montgomery County Jail for impersonating an officer.
As of Monday afternoon, the man was no longer listed as being in custody on the Miami Valley Jails website. It is not clear at this time whether he has been formally charged.
