WBAL Channel News, (Baltimore, Maryland)
BALTIMORE, Md. - A group of men are under arrest Tuesday, accused of impersonating Baltimore City police officers and possibly committing crimes, WBAL-TV 11 News reporter Rob Roblin reported.
Police stopped a sport utility vehicle in the 1600 block of Laurens Street in west Baltimore Tuesday that they considered suspicious, Roblin said.
Inside the vehicle, police found five men wearing fake police badges around their neck. Additionally, police said they found numerous weapons, marijuana and armor vests.
“The individuals were wearing the identification that would lead one to believe that they were fugitive recovery individuals working in a warrant type squad. They were arrested without incident,” said Carl Gutberlet, who is the police department’s deputy commissioner of operations.
Officers recovered a number of weapons, including a 12-gauge pump pistol-grip shotgun and a 9-mm rifle with laser sight.
“Having a 12-gauge shotgun and another rifle with a laser on it, as law enforcement officers, [we] don’t even carry that on the street,” Baltimore City police Officer Paul Southard said.
The five men also had fake guns and bb guns, Roblin reported.
“The bb guns definitely would look real to me if it was just on somebody’s side or in their hand and I just took a quick glance at it. It looked like a real weapon,” Baltimore City police Officer Keira Saunders said.
The men face weapons violations charges, but the investigation continues and authorities expect more charges.
“The firearms charges have already been in place, additional charges, with regard to whatever we can substantiate that they have been involved with, and during the course of that investigation, if it shows that they were portraying themselves as police officers, they can and will be charged as impersonating police officers,” Gutberlet said.