A Hunterdon County man was charged with posing as a cop after police say he used emergency lights to try to pull over a car on Interstate 78.

Little did he know that he was actually trying to pull over a real state trooper, officials said.

Zachary Schmidt, 25, of Bloomsbury, was in a white Jeep Grand Cherokee when he used blue emergency lights, the kind used by volunteer firefighters and EMTs to respond to emergencies, to try to pull over the off-duty trooper Thursday night at 9:58 on the westbound side of the interstate in Pohatcong, State Police said.

Police say Schmidt also flashed a placard with a State Police decal. But "after several minutes of this tomfoolery," the trooper reported the incident to a dispatcher. An on-duty trooper caught up to the Jeep and pulled over Schmidt. He was later released with a court date.

Police say Schmidt's placard also had a Pennsylvania State Police decal on the reverse side

"This incident occurred less than a mile from the Pennsylvania border, so Mr. Schmidt had both bases covered," State Police said on their Facebook page.

Police say Schmidt's motive was "for reasons only God and Mr. Schmidt know."

This wouldn't be the first time someone has impersonated a cop on a New Jersey road. Nor would it be the first time an cop impersonator pulled over a real cop.

In December, a North Jersey man was charged after allegedly pulling over an off-duty Woodbridge cop on the Garden State Parkway.

In August, a Hillsborough man was charged with pulling over a Pennsylvania woman for speeding on Route 31 in Hunterdon County.

In 2014, real Edison police charged two men in two separate incidents with impersonating cops. One allegedly extorted $800 from a driver he pulled over. The other identified himself as a cop during a dispute, and was later charged with attacking police.

Authorities say drivers should call 911 if a non-marked vehicle attempts to pull them over.

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