WESTFIELD – A Granby man who flashed a badge at a police officer when stopped for a traffic infraction may have been hoping for special consideration but the extra attention he received was probably not what he was looking for.
Officer Mark Carboneau reports he stopped a car on Main Street because of a red light violation and, when he asked the operator for his license and registration the man displayed a gold badge pinned to his wallet.
Carboneau reports the badge “was clearly shown to me as it was extending outside the window right in front of me.”
The officer pointed out to the man that it is illegal to impersonate a police officer and asked him what the badge was.
The man initially said that it was give to him by a college professor but later said that he had found a box of badges while cleaning out a garage and kept some.
Carboneau told the man that he “believed he was using the badge to avoid a ticket” and seized the badge.
He told the motorist that he may be able get it back from his captain.
Carboneau issued the man a verbal warning for the red light violation.
