DETROIT – Michigan State Police are investigating after a man impersonated an MSP trooper.
According to authorities, MSP received reports of a possible police impersonator pulling people Saturday night over near the intersection of I-96 and Davison Freeway. Witnesses described him as a white man wearing a black uniform and driving a black Dodge Charger with red/blue lights.
A fake police officer pulled over a Highland Park reserve officer on Saturday around 7 p.m. That officer said he knew immediately that something was wrong with the situation.
Highland Park Reserve Officer Dares Bryant was on I-96 near the Davison Freeway, heading to the police station for the overnight shift.
“Lights and sirens went off behind me. So, naturally, I stopped,” Bryant said.
READ: Michigan State Police warn of potential fake police officer initiating traffic stops
Bryant originally thought a Detroit officer was pulling him over, and then a man wearing an all-black dress uniform walked up to him and immediately ordered him out of his car. Bryant was on alert.
“I stopped out, we walked to his vehicle. I said, ‘Sir, who are you with?’ He said, ‘MSP,’” Bryant said. “Then from there, I asked him if I could see his departmental ID. He said, ‘We don’t carry those.’ That’s when I took some steps back and retreated.”
That’s when the fake cop jumped into his own car and took off.
Michigan State Police are investigating. The fake officer drove an all-black Charger with illegal police lights and a siren.
The suspect identified himself as a state trooper. The MSP does not use unmarked cars to conduct traffic stops. We use patrol cars that have either a red overhead light or are blue with out a overhead light. pic.twitter.com/IbmlXOpExu
— MSP Metro Detroit (@mspmetrodet) December 27, 2020
If you are pulled over by an unmarked vehicle and you aren’t sure if it’s real, MSP said residents should slow down and turn on your vehicle’s warning/emergency lights, drive to a public area and call 911 to explain your concerns, where a dispatcher will confirm if a police officer is initiating the traffic stop.