Youthful ‘officers’ arrested

Police in El Monte, Calif., have arrested two teenagers who they say impersonated officers and pulled over at least two motorists while sounding a siren and flashing emergency lights they had purchased on eBay.

The investigation was triggered when a motorist called police on July 28 to report that a male who had pulled him over appeared to be too young to be a police officer.

A similar incident was reported by other residents in El Monte, just east of downtown Los Angeles, which led to the arrest of a 15-year-old from nearby La Puente. On Monday, a 17-year-old from El Monte was also arrested.

A search of the 15-year-old’s home uncovered police uniforms and baseball caps with the word “police” on them. The uniforms were purchased from local uniform shops. Police said the youths added police-style emergency lights they had purchased over the Internet to a white, two-door sedan. No information was released on what they might have said to motorists during the stops.

The teens were charged with impersonating a peace officer and were released into the custody of their parents, El Monte Police Detective Ralph Batres said.