Man Impersonates Cop, Pulls Over Off-Duty Detective...Gets Arrested!

SELDEN, N.Y. (CBS/AP) It's nice to play pretend.

But it can also get you in trouble - especially if you're a grown man who's impersonating a cop.

A Long Island man was arrested Monday night after a driver he pulled over for a traffic stop turned out to be a legitimate detective, say police.

Suffolk County Police said 35-year-old Victor Alfaro-Marquez of Selden was arrested hours after the attempted traffic stop.

Detective William Zambito was driving home from work at about 4:30 a.m. when an unmarked car with flashing lights and sirens stopped him. When Zambito told Alfaro-Marquez he was an off-duty officer, police said Alfaro-Marquez fled the scene.

When police arrested Alfaro-Marquez at his home, they recovered two badges, handcuffs, a pellet pistol in a holster and a Drug Enforcement Agency baseball hat and shirt.

Apparently Alfaro-Marquez took being a fake cop very seriously.

He was released on bail on a very real charge of criminal impersonation.