By Michael Hinkelman, Daily News Staff Writer, The Philadelphia Daily News

On April 9, a Coatesville man called a 911 operator in Chester County and identified himself as a federal “off-duty enforcement officer.” According to a federal arrest affidavit, Eric Marques Devlin-Bell, 21, told the operator he had been driving a dark-blue, Crown Victoria “police cruiser” when he caught up with a motorist in a black Jaguar who had been speeding in excess of 100 mph on Route 202 south in Tredyffrin Township.

When the 911 operator inquired if there had been any confrontation with the motorist, Bell said he had showed the driver “my badge” and was being cooperative.

Now, Bell is in federal custody and has been indicted on charges of making an arrest while impersonating a law enforcement official and possessing and producing bogus identification documents.

The day after the encounter with the motorist, identified in the arrest affidavit as “M.B.,” Tredyffrin Township police detective T. Bereda interviewed M.B. The affidavit said M.B. told authorities a dark-blue car had been following him and that he eventually pulled off to the shoulder after his car overheated. The dark-blue car also pulled over and stopped “two feet behind” M.B.’s car.

The arrest affidavit said the driver of the dark-blue car came up to the motorist’s driver’s side door and showed M.B. a wallet containing a badge that had “federal agent” on it and an identification card with a photograph on it.

During a brief conversation, the alleged federal agent asked M.B.: “Do you know why I pulled you over?” M.B. replied, “No,” the affidavit said, and the other driver allegedly said: “It seemed to me you were going to pull away and I was going to have to chase you …”

During the interview, Bereda showed M.B. a photograph of Bell and M.B. “positively identified” Bell as the man who had been driving the dark-blue car that followed him on April 9, the arrest affidavit said.

Bereda later interviewed Bell and Bell admitted he approached the driver of a black Jaguar and showed him his identification card but denied showing a badge.

Bell allegedly said the identification card was from his “security company” and, after Bereda allegedly told him he didn’t have the authority to detain anyone, Bell’s head dropped, and he stated, “I know,” the affidavit said.

Police subsequently searched the dark-blue Crown Victoria Bell had been allegedly driving and determined the car had operable white and blue warning lights and a working emergency siren.

The arrest affidavit said authorities also recovered a silver badge hanging from the rearview mirror that was embellished with “Security Enforcement Officer” and a “U.S. Enforcement Officers” identification card with the name and photograph of Eric Bell printed on it which depicted a seal that a federal investigator later determined was the Great Seal of the United States as adopted by Congress in June 1782.

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