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A Winnipeg teen who used suction cups to put flashing lights on a former police vehicle got a visit from legitimate officers and was hit with a real fine.
Police launched an investigation Monday into a video that showed a white Ford Explorer with active flashing red and blue lights in its rear window.
The video, shot on Sunday, showed the vehicle in a retail parking lot on Sage Creek Boulevard, police said in a news release on Wednesday.
Investigators identified and met with the driver, a 17-year-old, who said he did it on a dare from friends.
The Explorer was a former police unit that had been decommissioned and stripped of its lights and other marking before being sold, the news release said.
The teen was not charged with impersonation of police but was “educated on the consequences” of doing so.
Section 130 of the Criminal Code of Canada says an adult who uses a badge or article of uniform or equipment in a way that might make people think they’re an officer could face up to five years in prison. Under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, minors are given lesser penalties.
The teen was fined $174 for having windows tinted beyond the allowable limit.
Social media posts on Instagram and Facebook by automotive community group MBI Imports say a car meet was happening in the parking lot when an Explorer showed up and began “harassing” people and chasing vehicles around the lot. Police confirmed in an email to CBC News it was the incident they investigated.
Several drivers tried to leave, and the Explorer blocked the exit, the posts allege.
“There’s no reason why you wouldn’t think that was a police vehicle. It looks like an unmarked police vehicle,” said Tyler Watson, an administrator with MBI Imports, which hosts car meets and serves as a hub for car-related events and news.
That assumption began to change based on the driver’s behaviour, he said.
“When you only have a couple of lights in the back window, it just seemed very suspect, and obviously, when police do traffic stops on people, they get out and actually do a traffic stop. They don’t just chase them around the parking lot,” Watson said.
Police called
The Explorer eventually left but later returned with its lights on again. Several people tried to confront the driver, but the Explorer left again and didn’t return.
That’s when police were called by people at the car meet.
“Obviously when you find someone, you know, trying to impersonate a police officer, it’s not a small deal,” Watson said.
Police wouldn’t say why the teen was only cautioned, not charged.
After learning on Wednesday who was behind the wheel, Watson said he’s content with the police decision.
“This is clearly someone who maybe just got their licence, just got handed the keys to this vehicle or possibly purchased it. When you’re 17 years old, I mean, that would be a pretty hard thing to resist, when you have a [former] police vehicle, not to mess around and do stuff like that,” he said.
“We don’t want him to go to prison or something like that for this. The fact [police] went to his house, had a conversation with him … and he still got some kind of fine, I believe is a good enough lesson.”