The New Orleans man turned his illegally installed flashing lights on as he pulled behind the real detective.

William Gilchrist, 45, was arrested after the detective became suspicious when Gilchrist’s car lights turned off. Gilchrist also produced a fake detective badge and falsely claimed to be a deputy.

One former police officer told television station WWL that a certain type of person impersonates police.

“Sometimes it’s people who fantasize with being in law enforcement or parents who may have been in law enforcement or family members who were in law enforcement and they never made the cut,” said the former officer.