White Bear Lake police this week released a sketch of a man who allegedly posed as a police officer and took hundreds of dollars from a motorist he pulled over.
The man was wearing a black uniform and driving what looked to be an unmarked squad car with red and blue flashing lights in its grille when he stopped the motorist at Hwys. 61 and 96 just before 11 a.m. on July 15.
The man said he was going to issue the driver a citation for a minor equipment violation, but he would accept cash on the spot in lieu of a ticket. The man took "several hundred dollars" that the victim had, said Capt. Randy Johnson.
The motorist later called police to inquire about the payment and learned that police don't collect fines at the side of the road.
"This was a robbery," Johnson said.
The impersonator is described as a white man in his late 20s to early 30s, about 6 feet and 180 pounds with a small goatee on his chin.
Johnson said he doesn't know of similar cases in the area but said his department is distributing the sketch in hopes of generating leads to track down the suspect.
Johnson said that when someone impersonating an officer is out there, "it frightens you and it undermines the public trust of law enforcement."
