DEERFIELD BEACH, Fla. — A South Florida man is accused of making a traffic stop, showing a motorist a badge and threatening to arrest her for “suspicious activity,” authorities said.
Carlwell Wilson, 58, of Deerfield Beach, was arrested Jan. 30 and charged with impersonating a law enforcement officer and false imprisonment, according to Broward County Sheriff’s Office online booking records.
Bail was set at $300,000.
According to the Broward County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded to a call in Deerfield Beach about a suspicious person shortly after 9:30 a.m. on Jan. 27, WPLG reported.
According to an arrest report, Wilson approached the woman from a dark-colored van and said he was a Broward Sheriff’s deputy, “conducting an area check for any suspicious activity,” the Sun-Sentinel reported.
Wilson allegedly asked the woman for her name and said he could arrest her but did not want to, the newspaper reported. The woman said Wilson was wearing a white shirt with a police emblem and said he was patrolling the area because he “cared about this place,” according to the arrest report.
The woman, whose name was not disclosed in the arrest report, was able to identify Wilson from a photographic lineup, the Sun-Sentinel reported.
Detectives later obtained a warrant, and Wilson was arrested Jan. 30 in Pompano Beach, WPLG reported.