In yet another entry towards the vast canon of 'Florida Man' stories, a man was arrested in Tampa Bay on April 16 after attempting to pull over an undercover cop while pretending he was an officer himself. As NBC News reports, 26-year-old Floridian Matthew Joseph Erris turned on red and blue lights so that he could pull over another driver. Duuing the traffic stop, he was met with an undercover detective who promptly reported the unorthodox traffic stop to the local sheriff's department.
When the deputies responded to the undercover officer's report, they searched Erris' 2007 white Chevrolet Trailblazer and discovered an airsoft gun in a holster. The non-lethal weapon was designed to look similar to a standard-issue firearm. They also noted that he had personally installed a blue and red light to the top of his SUV so that he could pull over unsuspecting individuals.
He has since been charged with impersonation an officer and was released on April 18 on a $2,000 surety bond. The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office has requested that anyone who might have been impacted by his traffic stops to contact them immediately.
In other recent Florida Man news, a man was killed by his pet cassowary, a rare bird often considered the most dangerous bird in the world. Cassowaries are categorized as "Class II wildlife," which means they're too dangerous to keep outside of a cage.
