11 January 2012

Fake police on Tharwa Drive

| johnboy
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ACT Policing is seeking witnesses to an attempted aggravated robbery which occurred in Conder last night (Tuesday, January 10).

Around 10.50pm a man was driving along Tharwa Drive when he saw a car with blue and red flashing lights on the dashboard following behind. He pulled over to the side of the road when a man got out of the passenger door and approached his vehicle.

Once he reached the door the offender threatened the man with a steel baseball bat, demanding the man hand over his wallet.

The driver handed over his wallet. The offender returned to the car after the driver of the offender’s vehicle yelled that they needed to leave quickly.

The vehicle was described as a well kept dark blue Holden V8 Commodore. It had no stripes or stickers, and had stock wheels, rims and spoiler.

The offender is described as around early 40s, of Caucasian appearance, 183cm (6’) tall, dark stubble on his face. He was wearing a black tight muscle shirt and black pants. He spoke with an Australian accent and had an extremely deep voice.

Police are urging the public to be cautious and asking anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000, or via the Crime Stoppers website on www.act.crimestoppers.com.au. Information can be provided anonymously.

[Courtesy ACT Policing]

fakelight

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obamabinladen11:18 pm 13 Jan 12

Matt Massey must have got parol.

screaming banshee7:55 pm 12 Jan 12

creative_canberran said :

I don’t even see why unmarked vehicles shouldn’t have those plates given the ACT Government has such a huge fleet of Government plated vehicles. It’s hardly going to scream cop.

No, its much easier to pick them by the low hanging rear end, lack of hubcaps on steel wheels or heavy buildup of brake dust on the front wheels.

patrick_keogh7:29 pm 12 Jan 12

buzz819 said :

Oops…This time with the link,

http://www.afp.gov.au/policing.aspx

After speaking to police operations I can report it does look something like that, however it will often be in the form of a police warrant which not only includes the badge (easy to fake, stolen copies abound) but a hologram-protected card with a photo of the officer.

My primary point was not “what does it look like” but that I’d expect the police web site to provide guidance as to how a member of the public can identify a police officer. They agree even if you don’t.

Oops…This time with the link,

http://www.afp.gov.au/policing.aspx

creative_canberran said :

steveu said :

They now pay state registration. Under the old commonwealth scheme, I believe they did not. Happy to be corrected on this.

Unmarked vehicles would still require state registration to be ‘unmarked’, if you get my drift.

That really is an amusing bit of useless accounting if true. ACT Government pays for the ACT Policing, only to have ACT Policing feed money back into a different part of the ACT Government to drive their vehicles.

Time for all police vehicles to wear ACT Government number plates. I don’t even see why unmarked vehicles shouldn’t have those plates given the ACT Government has such a huge fleet of Government plated vehicles. It’s hardly going to scream cop.

They could go by the Australian Road Rules, and not have to have registration plates on them at all.

Gee… I wonder why an unmarked car, which is out and about 24 hours a day, when other ACT Government cars aren’t, would want to look more discreet with normal plates on it?

patrick_keogh said :

I went to the ACT Police web site to get the lowdown on exactly what official police identification looks like. I know, my bad, I should just have asked for “assistance” here. Anyway, it does not appear that the web site has that information. So I called police operations and asked them to put it up in a prominent location on the web site and they thought that was a good idea 🙂

I wonder if it looks anything like that one in the picture?

creative_canberran4:43 pm 12 Jan 12

steveu said :

They now pay state registration. Under the old commonwealth scheme, I believe they did not. Happy to be corrected on this.

Unmarked vehicles would still require state registration to be ‘unmarked’, if you get my drift.

That really is an amusing bit of useless accounting if true. ACT Government pays for the ACT Policing, only to have ACT Policing feed money back into a different part of the ACT Government to drive their vehicles.

Time for all police vehicles to wear ACT Government number plates. I don’t even see why unmarked vehicles shouldn’t have those plates given the ACT Government has such a huge fleet of Government plated vehicles. It’s hardly going to scream cop.

patrick_keogh4:36 pm 12 Jan 12

I went to the ACT Police web site to get the lowdown on exactly what official police identification looks like. I know, my bad, I should just have asked for “assistance” here. Anyway, it does not appear that the web site has that information. So I called police operations and asked them to put it up in a prominent location on the web site and they thought that was a good idea 🙂

creative_canberran said :

You know if I recall correctly, there was a period in which many ACT Policing vehicles used the Commonwealth Z series number plates. I’m not sure why as there were also ACT Policing vehicles that used ACT number plates, I suspect it was some rushed transfer of vehicles from one branch to another.

In any case, the AFP is a Commonwealth agency, and ACT Policing assets are funded by the ACT Government under contract… why do the vehicles have standard ACT number plates? Surely it’s time to give them either Commonwealth or ACT Government number plates.

They now pay state registration. Under the old commonwealth scheme, I believe they did not. Happy to be corrected on this.

Unmarked vehicles would still require state registration to be ‘unmarked’, if you get my drift.

ThatUniStudent said :

I think many a magistrate will consider backing over someone to be excessive force.

Not if you do it accidentally, if, in your understandable desire to remove yourself from a dangerous situation, you select reverse gear instead of first and just floor it. That would just be too bad for the now somewhat floppy pretend cop.

KB1971 said :

steveu said :

I believe the thing to do is ask to see their warrant card if you have any doubts.

Maybe but is he is waving a baseball bat at you then it is probably best to GTFO…..

Agreed!!!! Use the right pedal!

steveu said :

I believe the thing to do is ask to see their warrant card if you have any doubts.

Maybe but is he is waving a baseball bat at you then it is probably best to GTFO…..

creative_canberran said :

You know if I recall correctly, there was a period in which many ACT Policing vehicles used the Commonwealth Z series number plates. I’m not sure why as there were also ACT Policing vehicles that used ACT number plates, I suspect it was some rushed transfer of vehicles from one branch to another.

In any case, the AFP is a Commonwealth agency, and ACT Policing assets are funded by the ACT Government under contract… why do the vehicles have standard ACT number plates? Surely it’s time to give them either Commonwealth or ACT Government number plates.

Yeah, in this case the number plate was not seen, so how would that help?

They would not do that for unmarked cars, so what’s the point?

I believe the thing to do is ask to see their warrant card if you have any doubts.

creative_canberran10:35 pm 11 Jan 12

You know if I recall correctly, there was a period in which many ACT Policing vehicles used the Commonwealth Z series number plates. I’m not sure why as there were also ACT Policing vehicles that used ACT number plates, I suspect it was some rushed transfer of vehicles from one branch to another.

In any case, the AFP is a Commonwealth agency, and ACT Policing assets are funded by the ACT Government under contract… why do the vehicles have standard ACT number plates? Surely it’s time to give them either Commonwealth or ACT Government number plates.

Rollersk8r said :

Such a bizarre story. How’s it possible to have an accurate description of the car but apparently not get the rego??

you’d be surprised what you can and can’t remember when in shock/confronted by a gentleman with a baseball bat.

I hope the police catch these people. This makes the undercover police’s job so much more difficult.

wildturkeycanoe8:24 pm 11 Jan 12

Great ideas people, when a police car attempts to pull you up, for reason of RBT or other simple misdemeanor, you get out your mobile and add a hefty fine to the list. Unless you have hands free, I wouldn’t take that advice in case it’s the real cops.
However, I agree with keeping engine running,windows up and doors locked until identity can be established. A bat or knife means they are not the police and you need to drive like hell to get away.

ThatUniStudent7:23 pm 11 Jan 12

dazzab said :

Say what? Handed over the wallet? That’s crazy. Depending on the circumstances of course but if I’m sitting in my car with the engine running and I see someone approaching the car with a bat I think my first instinct would be to boogie as fast as I could. Maybe that or reverse in to them as fast as possible. But no way am I just going to sit there and hand my wallet out the window. I’ll give the driver the benefit of the doubt but this sounds very sus. Regardless, hope these guys get what they deserve.

I think many a magistrate will consider backing over someone to be excessive force. Especially when by driving forward away from the situation you are removing yourself from danger. But yeah, if I saw a bat, I’d be out of there too.

Rollersk8r said :

Heyyy… That’s not the wallet inspector!

Such a bizarre story. How’s it possible to have an accurate description of the car but apparently not get the rego??

1000 internets for that quote! Had me laughing for ages.

On a more serious note, yeah…this is pretty scary.

If in doubt…drive to the cop station. I don’t know about using your phone while you’re driving though…is that illegal? 😛

screaming banshee4:36 pm 11 Jan 12

Wheels and Rims?

I suspect if you keep driving for a little while these guys would just piss off and harass someone else…..or try and run you off the road.

Heyyy… That’s not the wallet inspector!

Such a bizarre story. How’s it possible to have an accurate description of the car but apparently not get the rego??

dazzab said :

Say what? Handed over the wallet? That’s crazy. Depending on the circumstances of course but if I’m sitting in my car with the engine running and I see someone approaching the car with a bat I think my first instinct would be to boogie as fast as I could. Maybe that or reverse in to them as fast as possible. But no way am I just going to sit there and hand my wallet out the window. I’ll give the driver the benefit of the doubt but this sounds very sus. Regardless, hope these guys get what they deserve.

I would go with drive to the nearest police station. If you have a mobile, call the police assistance line and advise them what you are doing.

I have had unmarked cars light up on the highway and I always drive to the nearest service centre or rest area that contains people. Called the police assistance line once and they told me it was fine and gave me directions to the police station in the nearest town. Got there and the cop was a little peeved but understood my caution at 2am.

colourful sydney racing identity said :

I guess the thing to do if pulled over by an unmarked vehicle is lock the doors, wind up the windows, keep the enging running and wait to see i.d. – any other suggestions?

It must be frightening when you see blue and red flashing lights, get pulled over and expect a cop to walk up to and speak with you but instead a thug confronts you with a bat.

Now that this has happened I’d like to think that I would keep driving, call 131444 and tell them that an unmarked car is trying to pull me over. They would be able to tell you quickly if the car is legit or not.

If not, you can always pull over and:

(a) get abused by a police officer for not pulling over straight away or;
(b) get robbed by thug impersonating a police officer.

Either way it would make a great yarn at a BBQ 🙂

colourful sydney racing identity said :

I guess the thing to do if pulled over by an unmarked vehicle is lock the doors, wind up the windows, keep the enging running and wait to see i.d. – any other suggestions?

If the car is unmarked then that’s fine. As soon as the person approaches your vehicle you’ll know whether they’re legit or not. Undercover officers will still normally be wearing their belt with gun etc (but may be hidden under a jacket) and will have their AFP badge to show you if required. They certainly won’t be wearing muscle shirts and carrying baseball bats.

colourful sydney racing identity said :

This really scares me.

Same Here

Honestly, I think if I’m ever the slightest bit unsure I’ll just keep driving at an even pace to the nearest police station, If it turns out to be the real police, I can only hope they will understand given this is going on.

Looking for signs like alternating high beams, and lights on the wing mirrors or bonnet lip, as well as pulling up somewhere where it is easy to floor it, and keeping it in gear are probably not bad idea’s, or putting the car into reverse with the clutch down/brake on as soon as you are pulled over so you can look for a cop uniform in your rear view might help.

Scary indeed!

Say what? Handed over the wallet? That’s crazy. Depending on the circumstances of course but if I’m sitting in my car with the engine running and I see someone approaching the car with a bat I think my first instinct would be to boogie as fast as I could. Maybe that or reverse in to them as fast as possible. But no way am I just going to sit there and hand my wallet out the window. I’ll give the driver the benefit of the doubt but this sounds very sus. Regardless, hope these guys get what they deserve.

colourful sydney racing identity11:53 am 11 Jan 12

I guess the thing to do if pulled over by an unmarked vehicle is lock the doors, wind up the windows, keep the enging running and wait to see i.d. – any other suggestions?

colourful sydney racing identity11:52 am 11 Jan 12

This really scares me.

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