MINOT — A Lewiston man has been charged with impersonating a police officer. Investigators say he followed a woman home in what appeared to be a Maine State Police cruiser.

14 Comments

E-mail this story Print this story Save this story

Sponsor

Daniel Godin

Daniel Godin, 50, of 89 Heather Drive, was charged by the Androscoggin County Sheriff's Department with impersonating a public servant and stalking. Police said Godin, driving a blue 1999 Ford Crown Victoria, followed a woman to her home in Minot on Tuesday.

After stopping at the woman's home, Godin was confronted by her husband and claimed to be a state trooper, police said.

Sheriff's officials said Godin's car had been modified to resemble a police cruiser. Two antennae were attached to the trunk and a spotlight was prominently displayed on the car, police said. A police-style scanner was set up in the front, along with a microphone.

Godin had also placed a Maine.gov sticker in a rear window and he had an orange traffic vest, like those carried by state police, in the backseat, police said.

"Anybody who looked at this car would swear it was a police cruiser," said Androscoggin County Sheriff Guy Desjardins. "That can be dangerous. A kid might see a car like that and walk right up to it."

In recent years, more Crown Victorias have been put up for auction by the state as fleets of old police cruisers are retired. There is nothing police can do about people buying them or painting them blue, Desjardins said. But when a civilian makes an attempt to pass himself off as a cop, real police will make an arrest.

"When people see a police cruiser," Desjardins said, "they need to be able to trust that it's someone who can help them. That's why this kind of situation is a concern to us."