A Washington convicted felon is accused of impersonating a police officer when he arrived at various emergency calls and authorities discovered he had a “large amount of police equipment.”
Michael Scaletta-Teates responded to an active police scene in Bremerton, Wash. on Sept. 5, where he wore a dark uniform with a tactical vest that showcased a metallic Edmonds Police Department badge and “police” and “SWAT” patches, according to the Bremerton Police Department.
“I thought you were like one of our detectives at first,” a Bremerton Police officer told Scaletta-Teates, police body camera footage obtained by KOMO showed.
“I know some of the guys with the task force,” Scaletta-Teates told the officers during his arrest.
Scaletta-Teates responded to a trespassing call and a tip about a potential fire in a parking garage, according to the outlet.
Police quickly figured out that Scaletta-Teates, who drove an unmarked Ford Explorer with “activated blue lights,” did not have the extensive resume he claimed.
Scaletta-Teates claimed he moonlighted part-time as a security guard and was an officer with the Edmonds Police Department in Edmonds, Wash., roughly 35 miles away from Bremerton.
The felon introduced himself to the officers as “Mezzy Scaletta” and failed to provide his police commission card, an identification card given to law enforcement.
Officers called the Edmonds Police Department and discovered the staff did not know Scaletta-Teates and claimed that he was “never” on their payroll.
“Can we not do this in front of every- I mean, really?” Scaletta-Teates asked while being handcuffed and taken into custody.
Police on the scene looked inside the windows of the suspect’s truck and noticed that he may have been ready to impersonate other respectable jobs as well.
“He’s got a firefighter helmet too, he’s ready to do it all,” the cop quipped.
According to the bodycam footage, Scaletta-Teates told officers that he had retired from Baltimore Police after two decades and got a job in Washington.
The alleged officer impersonator was booked into the Kitsap County Jail and accused of 1st degree criminal impersonation and unlawful possession of a firearm.
In January 2016, Scaletta-Teates was found guilty of making a bomb threat during an incident in North Carolina, according to the Kitsap Sun. He served 185 days in prison.
Despite his felony, he worked as security for the Salvation Army before his arrest and he allegedly wasn’t easy to be around.
“He was intimidating last night,” a person at the shelter told KOMO News. “He told a couple of my friends to shut up and keep walking.”
Scaletta-Teates was filmed in a separate incident responding to an emergency police call at a 7-Eleven and allegedly told customers that he was a cop,” according to the outlet.
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