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LAKE COUNTY, Ind.–He’s always wanted to be a cop, but the way he went about is what got him arrested. 

State police say they spotted Collin Hamlin, 21, of Lansing, Illinois driving on the Indiana Toll Road just after 10 Sunday night in a tan Jeep Cherokee with red and blue emergency lights flashing. 

That caused other drivers to get out of his way. A trooper ran a check of the license plate on the Cherokee, which showed that it was not a law enforcement vehicle. 

That trooper also says he clocked Hamlin going over 90 mph in a 55 mph zone. 

Police say a trooper pulled over the Cherokee and saw Hamlin frantically trying to unplug the flashing lights from the power outlet. The trooper says Hamlin told him he had always wanted to be a cop ever since he had been a junior cadet with a police department in Illinois. 

Hamlin was arrested and taken to the Lake County Jail. 

Hamlin has been charged with the following: 

  • Impersonation of a Law Enforcement Officer, a level 6 felony 
  • Reckless Driving, a Class C misdemeanor 
  • Emergency lights on an unauthorized private vehicle, a Class C infraction 
  • Unsafe lane movement, a Class C infraction 
  • Following too closely, a Class C infraction  

(PHOTO: Indiana State Police)