By Police1 Staff
LOWELL, Mich. — Lowell police pulled several motorists over and surprised them with Christmas gifts in a video gone viral.
According to MLive, the police department was approached by entrepreneur Rob Bliss, who creates viral videos through his company, about a project that would cast police officers in a positive light.
The department agreed to the project and conducted the unusual traffic stops on November 19 during heavy snowfall.
Outfitted with a camera, Officer Scot VanSolkema stopped drivers and asked them what items they were out shopping for during the holiday season.
Around 50 motorists were pulled over and around 30 gifts were given out — ranging from an Xbox video game console to a flat-screen television.
The gifts were paid for by the UPtv Network, who teamed up with Bliss’ company on the project.
Video of the surprise stops was posted to YouTube December 9 and immediately went viral — closing in on one million views as of this posting.
“Police officers do a lot more than write tickets and take bad guys to jail,” Officer VanSolkema told Today.com. “We’re people, like everyone else.”