Convicted felon caught impersonating Police Officer at crime scene (video)
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A convicted felon in Washington has been accused of impersonating a police officer after showing up at multiple emergency scenes while equipped with police gear, according to authorities.
Michael Scaletta-Teates, 39, was arrested on September 5 in Bremerton, Wash., after responding to an active crime scene in a dark uniform, tactical vest, and a metallic badge marked “Edmonds Police Department.” His vest also displayed “police” and “SWAT” patches.
Body camera footage showed a Bremerton officer initially mistaking him for a real detective. “I thought you were one of our detectives at first,” the officer told him.
Scaletta-Teates also appeared at other incidents, including a trespassing call and a reported parking garage fire. He drove an unmarked Ford Explorer outfitted with blue lights and claimed to be both a part-time security guard and a police officer in Edmonds, about 35 miles away.
When asked for his credentials, he introduced himself as “Mezzy Scaletta” but could not provide a commission card. A call to Edmonds Police confirmed that he had never been employed there.
Officers searching his vehicle noticed gear suggesting he was prepared to impersonate other professions as well. “He’s got a firefighter helmet too — he’s ready to do it all,” one officer remarked.
Scaletta-Teates was booked into Kitsap County Jail on charges of first-degree criminal impersonation and unlawful possession of a firearm.
Court records show a history of criminal behavior. In 2016, he was convicted in North Carolina for making a bomb threat and served 185 days in prison. Despite his record, he recently worked as a security guard for The Salvation Army in Bremerton, where staff described him as “intimidating.”
Witnesses also claimed he had been filmed in a separate incident at a 7-Eleven, posing as a police officer and ordering customers around.
Aquí hay algo de contexto: se espera que un hombre acusado de fingir ser un oficial de policía de Edmonds haga una aparición en el tribunal del condado de Kitsap esta semana. La policía de Bremerton dice que arrestaron a Michael Scaletta-Teates la semana pasada después de que… pic.twitter.com/N7VPHs21Ae
