A west Auckland man has been ordered off the road after he modified a Holden Commodore to look like an official South Australian police vehicle.
Rodney Roper bought a former cop car at auction in July for $7000 and spent a further $3000 dressing it up in police livery, NZME reports.
Mr Roper has been fascinated by the police since he was young, but was barred from entering Police College due to injuries from his childhood.
Shortly after posting photos of what he calls his dream car on Facebook, Mr Roper was visited by New Zealand Police, who said there had been complaints from members of the public.
They said he could keep most of the livery, but if he wanted to take the car out in public he needed to cover up the word "police".
Non-compliance would mean Mr Roper could be charged with impersonating police and stung with a fine up to $15,000 or a year in prison.
"It's gutting I can't drive it around as it is. I do not want to change it - it's absolutely stunning," he told NZME.
According to posts on Facebook Mr Roper has now covered up the word police, albeit temporarily, using paper taped to his car.
He said he was looking into more permanent solutions.
Newshub.
