Suspected Police Impersonator Goes Before Judge
Follow CBSMIAMI.COM: Facebook | Twitter
MIAMI (CBSMiami) - A man accused of impersonating a police officer by trying to pull over a Miami-Dade commissioner went before a judge Wednesday morning.
After hearing details of the reported crime, Judge Renatha S. Francis raised the bond amount for Franklin Dixon-Lozano, 27, from $6,500 to $15,000.
Commissioner Joe Martinez said he was driving along the Turnpike when a black SUV with flashing red lights in the grille began to follow him. Martinez believing he was being pulled over by police, changed lanes and the vehicle continued to follow him. But something felt off.
"Normally you would pull over to the right," said Martinez, who is a former police officer. "I pulled over to the left, the gentleman followed me. I went over to the middle land and he stayed behind me. I went to the right lane and he stayed behind me. So my thought was maybe they have better undercover cars than when I worked undercover. It was something in my experience that just didn't seem right."
As Martinez began to slow down, the SUV drove past him and sped off.
Martinez flagged down a passing Miami-Dade police officer and explained what had happened.
Miami-Dade police stopped the SUV on State Road 836 near Lejeune Road. They said the driver, Dixon-Lozano, had a gun holstered on his waistband.
Police detained Dixon-Lozano and his passenger and questioned them.
"They picked the wrong guy. I am very glad it was me instead of a regular citizen," he said. "They have had a lot of police impersonators rob people and do other things. So in that sense I'm glad it was me," he said.
Dixon-Lozano was subsequently arrested and charged him with impersonating a police officer and possession of a weapon while committing a crime.
The passenger was not charged and released.
