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Parkville man arrested for impersonating police officer

A Parkville man has been arrested for impersonating a police officer, and Baltimore County Police are wondering if there may be people who fell victim to him posing as an officer.

According to county police reports, at 4 a.m. on Jan. 19, a county police officer in Parkville pulled over a silver Ford Crown Victoria that was speeding and found Derek John Propalis, 59, of the 2900 block of Garnet Road, wearing a Virginia State Police uniform.

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The officer investigated and discovered that Propalis had never been a Virginia State trooper — though the vehicle was also outfitted like a police cruiser.

The car was modified to have emergency lights, a laptop computer, a spotlight, a siren with a public address system, and a video monitoring system, though the video system and laptop did not work.

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Detectives ultimately searched Propalis' home, and found uniforms with badges and patches from multiple police departments, including Baltimore County, Baltimore City, Maryland State Police, Minneapolis Police, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police and theU.S. Marine Corps Police.

Detectives also found and seized real and fake weapons, ammunition, gun belts, pepper spray, inert hand grenades, marijuana and radios at the home.

Propalis has been charged with impersonating an officer. He is being held on a no-bail status, but is currently on home detention.

County police are asking any citizens who believe they may have encountered Propalis impersonating a police officer, such as on a traffic stop, to contact them at 410-307-2020.

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