Undercover police cars as ambulances?

[lynall]

I was talking to wife about this today and she said she would not stop for anything but a marked up police car and would just drive to local nick.

I see the Maidstone Skodas everyday and they are silver base colour, the Mondeo was yellow and green squares (battenburg?) couldnt see any base colour.

Wish i had paid more attention now!

Roberts pic looks similiar but dont remember the white bumpers and being Kent i am sure they werent so new and shiny ho ho, thinking of the taxpayers you know.



Lynall

 

[stevesey]

I have never known them try to show you their warrant card in a moving vehicle.

Years ago I showed a guy who was tailgating me my opened wallet over my left shoulder. He immediately dropped back and started behaving himself.

I was driving a white cavalier at the time which may have led him to the wrong conclusion (they we common as police vehicles then).

 

[robert.saunders]

...the Mondeo was yellow and green squares (battenburg?) couldnt see any base colour.

New shape Mondeo here too:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/83194815@N00/2790019786/

 

[Dryce]

im thinking one of 3.

1) armed response unit
2) special branch
3) Safety camera van

4) Something old and battered used for surveillance
5) Decoy vehicles

 

[lynall]

Just been looking everywhere and cant find a pic of previous shape Mondeo in paramedic colours guess 06 ish reg, all i can find is that same pic on klickr its everywhere

I personally would pay no attention to someone showing me their wallet whilst in a car, special constable would spring to mind.

Plus i wouldnt know what a warrant card looks like, MBClub card, Matalan etc.


Lynall

 

[popuptoaster]

5 or 6 years ago i was overtaken on the M11 by an RX7 going pretty fast, a few seconds later a plain MG montego turbo went past with blue lights in the grill, suprised me cos they were well past their sell by date by then, i hadn't seen one other than at a car show for years.

 

[crockers]

im thinking one of 3.

1) armed response unit
2) special branch ( altho they always stuck out like a sore thumb in the range rover at the docks at belfast )
3) Safety camera van

4) Something old and battered used for surveillance
5) Decoy vehicles

6. London Taxi
7. Ambulance used for surveillance

 

[Dieselman]

7. Ambulance used for surveillance

I wouldn't have though an ambulance as they stand out like a sore thumb and everyone wants to know what's going on.

I've been reliably informed of Police borrowing 2nd hand cars from local dealers for covert work.

 

[robert.saunders]

I've been reliably informed of Police borrowing 2nd hand cars from local dealers for covert work.

Sure do in pboro but couldn't possibly say for what

 

[davidjpowell]

Sprinter van in Dark Grey fully equiped with discreet lights on the M62, Strangely enough went from West Yorkshire into North Yorkshire, so may not have been police.

 

[nickcc101]

4) Something old and battered used for surveillance
5) Decoy vehicles

Decoy vehicles. Old escorts and focus with hole in rear of roof where aerial had been fitted. Bit obvious if you're a thieving scally.

 

[crockers]

I wouldn't have though an ambulance as they stand out like a sore thumb and everyone wants to know what's going on.

.

It was a joke .....sorry didn't put enough smilies on it,,,

A play on OP

 

[flango]

5 or 6 years ago i was overtaken on the M11 by an RX7 going pretty fast, a few seconds later a plain MG montego turbo went past with blue lights in the grill, suprised me cos they were well past their sell by date by then, i hadn't seen one other than at a car show for years.

A certain force near me still use an unmarked Mk2 Golf GTi regularly seen on M1 & M62

 

[neilrr]

This raises an interesting legal point regarding the requirement to stop for an unmarked car displaying a blue light : unless the occupants draw alongside and show a warrant card ( which varies from force to force , so an 'out of towner' might not recognise it as such ) , or overtake and then use a 'police stop' sign in their back window , you could quite reasonably state in any defence you did not realise it was a police car or that you thought they might be impostors up to no good and felt for your own safety that it would be unwise to stop ( there was a case in our area a couple of years ago where two men impersonating police officers in a grey Mercedes fitted with blue lights behind the grille were going around stopping lone women and lecturing them about their driving , the men were wearing white shirts , black ties etc. and could be mistaken for cops by the clueless ) of course it would be wise to at least phone the police and report the 'incident ' .

Until the cops do something about the hordes of cars driving around with blue lights on them I will be inclined to doubt their authenticity unless they are in a marked car.

I had some yoofs in a hot hatch turn on a siren (no blue lights) behind me about a month ago so they could continue their race with an open road!

Since the job of enforcing the law of the roads has been passed to cameras it'll only get worse.

 

[James Rothwell]

5 or 6 years ago i was overtaken on the M11 by an RX7 going pretty fast, a few seconds later a plain MG montego turbo went past with blue lights in the grill, suprised me cos they were well past their sell by date by then, i hadn't seen one other than at a car show for years.

Up until abou 4 years ago Essex police where sill using an aging E34 535i it was one of the last E34s on an N plate and it was bright red.

Always looked quite cool to see a chav in a **** old Corsa being pulled by a old cool bmw.

Like this one!

 

[Deleted member 6183]

Police in cars pulling over motorists?

How quaint.

I thought they had cameras for this kind of thing.

 

[sgtbob]

Last year, a guy who my dad works with was on his way home from the airport after coming home from holiday on a late night flight. He was driving his Bentley Continental GT down a dual carraige way, and found he was being followed by a set of lights - no one else on the road. The car following him kept coming up really close and then backing off and a few times lokked like he was going for an overtake and then backed off again. Minutes later blue lights and sirens came on and he was pulled over. My dads mate got out and the 2 police officers asked for his i/d etc and was it his car (such a nice car out at that time etc). My dads mate turned up clean and so they started snooping around trying to find somthing to do him for. He ended up lodging a complaint against the officers for harrasment and as they were in an unmarked volvo he was worried for his safety.

 

[wemorgan]

By driving so close to the car in front were they also in danger of encouraging him to drive faster......is that entrapment?

 

[sgtbob]

Possibly yes!lol

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

I saw a red E34 5-Series a few years ago, which had pulled a car on the M40. Stood out then as being an old police car.