Portland police are miffed that at least 9 patrol cars this afternoon were tied up searching for what they thought was a motorist who had abducted a woman.

It turned out to be a 31-year-old Portland man doing what he called "Valentine's Day role-playing.''

Police said they found his girlfriend naked and bound in the back of his car, with duct tape covering her mouth.

Now the couple will be doing a different type of role-play behind bars.

The call came in at 12:35 p.m. when a witness noticed a blue Subaru Legacy leave the New Seasons Market on North Interstate Avenue, with a bound naked woman in the back of the car.

North Precinct Sgt. Willie Halliburton said officers flooded the area to look for the car, and alerted Washington law enforcement to be on the lookout for a vehicle fitting the description.

A witness provided a license plate to officers. The Subaru was registered to Nikolas Alexander Harbar, 31, who lives in Northeast Portland.

Police maintained watch on the home.

"We were concerned,'' Halliburton said. "We thought it was something bad.''

At 12:56 p.m., an officer waiting at the home spotted the car returning to the registered owner's address. Police found the woman in the back of the Subaru, nude and bound.

Harbar told officers that he and his girlfriend, Stephanie Morgan Pelzner, 26, were doing some Valentine's Day role-playing. Pelzner confirmed that she voluntarily agreed to be nude and bound in the back of the car, police said.

In fact, the two said they had stopped at several stores, and were "going after the shock effect,'' Halliburton said. It wasn't until they pulled out of the New Seasons Market lot that a witness alerted police.

Police found wine in the Subaru. The woman draped a dress over her as police interviewed her, Halliburton said. "They were real apologetic,'' he said.

"It was the weirdest thing in my 24 years,'' said Halliburton, who on the side does stand-up comedy as the "Comedy Cop.''

"If I could use this act in my routine I would,'' he said. But he added, "I try to be respectful.''

Both Harbar and Pelzner were arrested, accused of second-degree disorderly conduct and booked into the Multnomah County Detention Center.

Happy Valentine's Day!

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