Driver Charged with Impersonating Cop in Lutz

A Florida Highway Patrol Trooper was driving east on State Road 54 in Lutz on Friday night when the driver of a white car in the center lane signaled him, according to the trooper’s report.

“Stop that guy in front of me,” the driver of the white vehicle told the trooper, according to the report. “He is impersonating a cop. He just tried to pull me over, and I’m on the phone with police.”

The driver in front of the white vehicle was a green Dodge pickup truck, and the trooper followed it into a parking lot, along with the driver of the white car.  The driver of the car told the trooper that the driver of the pickup had used a siren and strobe lights to try and pull him over.

When questioned, the driver of the pickup denied having a siren or strobe light and also denied attempting to stop the car. The trooper noticed a box on the floor of the pickup, and the driver said it was a converter for his speakers.

The trooper got permission to search the vehicle and noticed the box had three settings: “Siren,” “P.A.” and “Animals.” The siren sounded when the trooper turned on the device. There were strobe lights in the truck, but they were not connected. There was also a working flashlight.

The trooper arrested the driver of the pickup, James Carter, on Friday.

Carter, 33, of 4350 Holt Road, Zephyrhills, was charged with falsely impersonating a law enforcement officer. He remains in the Land O' Lakes Jail, with bail set at $5,000.