The Benton Police Department says it's investigating after a woman was pulled over Saturday night by a possible police impersonator.
Around 8:30 p.m., a woman told police that she was pulled over near Jackmon Street and Airlane Drive in Benton by “what appeared to be an undercover police car," Benton Police Department spokesman Lt. Kevin Russell said.
She described the vehicle as an older model, dark-colored four-door car with one blue light on the front dash.
An approximately 30-year-old white man with a southern accent asked the woman for her license and registration without telling her who he was or why she was pulled over, Russell said.
The woman became uneasy about the stop, and when she told the man she was going to drive to a nearby gas station, he then turned the blue light off and drove in the opposite direction, Russell said.
Detectives are still working on establishing if the man was an officer with another agency, such as the Saline County sheriff’s office or the Arkansas State Police, who also have jurisdiction in the area.
“Although it wasn’t one of our officers, our agency does use undercover vehicles occasionally for traffic stops,” Russell said. “Our vehicles have numerous blue lights and other emergency equipment installed on them instead of one light on the dash.”
Russell said if anyone is unsure whether an actual police officer is pulling them over to immediately call 911 and ask the dispatcher. If a phone is not available, proceed slowly to the nearest populated area, he said.
Anyone with additional information about this incident is asked to call the Benton Police Department at (501) 778-1171 or (501) 315-TIPS.