Real Cops: Fake Cop Under Arrest

A man accused of impersonating a police officer and conducting traffic stops has been taken into custody and has he has a long criminal history, according to police.

Chula Vista resident Kevin Alan Kenniston, 41, was arrested Monday at 8.10 a.m. at an unrelated hearing at the South County Superior Court, police said.

Kenniston was allegedly driving a Ford Crown Victoria and conducted a traffic stop near East Orange Avenue and Max Road on February 23 at 2 p.m.

The car was painted black and white and equipped with emergency lights and a siren, police said.

โ€œKenniston confronted the female about โ€˜running a red light and almost running into him.โ€™  Kenniston drove off when a CVPD uniformed patrol unit pulled into the area,โ€ said Capt. Gary Ficacci.

The driver told police she thought Kenniston was a real police officer.

During a second incident on March 9 at 9 a.m., Kenniston allegedly dropped off his girlfriend's daughter at a Chula Vista elementary school in the same Crown Victoria.

โ€œHe used his emergency lights and PA system to confront another female who was parked near an alleged red/yellow zone,โ€ said Capt. Ficacci. โ€œWhen the female ignored him, he blocked her car and demanded her license, registration, and insurance.โ€

The woman handed over the documents, thinking he was an off-duty police officer.

โ€œHe confronted her for 20 minutes before driving off with the emergency lights still on,โ€ said Capt. Ficacci.

The suspect allegedly conducted a third traffic stop using emergency lights and a siren on Interstate-805 before dropping off his girlfriend's daughter at school, while the child was still in the vehicle.

Kenniston was taken into custody for two felony counts of false imprisonment, two misdemeanor counts of impersonating a peace officer and one count of felony child endangerment.

Kenniston has a long criminal history dating back to 1989. He has been in and out of prison several times for DUI, burglary and car theft, according to court documents.

He was charged with at least a dozen crimes in San Diego County, including East County and South Bay.  Kenniston was convicted of at least ten of those crimes.

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