Cops: W. Islip man impersonated fed agent

Shaun Coppola, 24, of West Islip, was arrested and charged... — Shaun Coppola, 24, of West Islip, was arrested and charged with impersonating a federal agent after a motorist reported to Suffolk County police that on Feb. 29 a man driving a Jeep Cherokee had activated a red strobe light had tried to get him to pull over on Fifth Avenue in Bay Shore. (March 21, 2012) Credit: SCPD

By DAVID J. LOPEZdavid.lopez@newsday.comMarch 21, 2012

A West Islip man was arrested Wednesday and charged with impersonating a federal agent when he tried to pull over another driver last month in Bay Shore, police said.

Shaun Coppola, 24, of 61 Kobb Blvd., was charged with second-degree criminal impersonation, Suffolk County police said in a news release. He was bailed out, and will be arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip at a later date.

The victim reported that on Feb. 29 he was traveling an Fifth Avenue at Brook Avenue when "a man driving a Jeep Cherokee activated a red strobe light and attempted to pull him over," police said in the release. "The driver of the Jeep pulled alongside the victim's vehicle at a traffic light and identified himself as a federal agent but fled when the victim asked for identification."

Coppola was arrested at 9:45 a.m. Wednesday. Police did not say what led to Coppola's arrest.

Police urge anyone who may have encountered the suspect under similar circumstances to call either Crime Stoppers at 800-220-TIPS or the Third Precinct at 631-854-8326. All calls will be kept confidential.

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