Driver catches suspected police impersonator on camera in Greenbelt bogus stop

A driver stopped by an armed man impersonating a police officer in Greenbelt, Maryland, said he feared for his life as he caught the encounter on camera earlier this month.

The victim spoke with our sister station Telemundo 44 after he provided the Greenbelt Police Department with clear video of what turned out to be a bogus traffic stop. 

Esteban Ponce said he recorded the encounter with a man later identified as Carl Colston Jr. because a gut instinct told him something was off. 

Ponce described how the driver of an older model Crown Victoria pulled up behind him and began honking his horn and flashing interior lights at around 3 p.m. on July 8 as he drove his pickup truck on Greenbelt Road, near the exit for Route 201 northbound.

When Ponce motioned for the Crown Victoria’s driver to go around, he said the vehicle pulled around and stopped in front of him, forcing him to stop. 

The driver then flashed a gold badge.

“I thought he was a policeman because he turned on his lights and I said, ‘OK, this is a policeman.’ I pulled over, but I saw he wasn’t wearing a vest or anything. He only showed a police badge,” Ponce said. 

The victim said when he indicated that he was recording and calling the real authorities, the man got back into his car and drove away.

“When I was calling the police, when I saw him leaving, I saw he had a gun in the car and he threatened me. He said he would kill me,” Ponce said. 

He gave the recording to the Greenbelt officers who responded to the scene. 

Carl Colston Jr., of District Heights, now faces charges related to the handgun and for impersonating a police officer. 

According to the court documents in the case, one of the first responding Greenbelt Police officers actually recognized the suspect from when he worked security at a Greenbelt hotel.

Ponce said he wanted to speak out, and “say this to the community so they do not get intimidated by other people.”