NH police help pull off proposal for couple who met in jail

NEW LONDON, N.H. -- When your relationship starts out with police arresting you, it's only appropriate that the marriage proposal goes down the same way, reports CBS Boston.

Such was the case back in September in New London, N.H..  

In the video shot from a police dashboard camera, New London Acting Police Chief Edward Andersen executes a traffic stop.

During the stop, an unsuspecting Samantha Labo is reprimanded after asking the officers why she and driver Matt Van Vliet had been pulled over.

After a few minutes, Andersen orders Labo and Van Vliet to step out of the car, saying that there is a warrant out for Van Vliet’s arrest.

Van Vliet is loosely cuffed in front of the police cruiser before walking back to his car and asking Labo to marry him. She says yes.

"I had no idea what was going on," Labo told CBS station WBZ-TV. "I went from being absolutely terrified to being the most happiest I’ve ever been."

Chief Anderson, who noted that the proposal stunt went down while he was off-shift, says he agreed to help out because of the back story.

“(Van Vliet) said he would really enjoy it if I could be a part of it because he felt that I was part of the reason they got together,” Andersen said. “Because of the whole story behind it is why I felt it would be good to be involved with that.”

The couple met as freshmen at Colby-Sawyer College when Anderson arrested them at a party where underage drinking was suspected. They were both eventually cleared of any charges after taking Breathalyzer tests.

"We kind of met in jail sort of, so I thought it would be cool to include the cops again," Van Vliet said. "My mom said surprises were the best way to do it, so I guess I went kind of overboard, but it worked out pretty well."