HUNTINGTON BEACH – A man and woman were arrested early Tuesday morning after attempting to make a traffic stop while impersonating police officers, officials said.

A California Highway Patrol spokesman said their motive was unclear, but he did say who they were trying to pull over was certain – an off-duty sergeant.

The pair were driving a black, unmarked, police-style Crown Victoria with side-mounted spotlights on northbound I-405 when they deployed red and blue strobe lights to pull over a car, said Tom Joy, a California Highway Patrol officer and spokesman.

The man they tried to pull over at 12:30 a.m. was an off-duty sergeant, Joy said. The officer, Sgt. Bill Russell, worked for the Irvine Police Department, Cmdr. Mike Hallinan told City News Service.

“He recognized that the red and blue lights were too dim and did not stop,” Joy said. “He called 911.”

The Crown Victoria’s spotlights turned on and the sergeant, again, refused to stop. Instead, he detailed what was going on to the dispatcher.

“The Crown Victoria passed the sergeant at a high rate of speed, exiting at Beach Boulevard” in Huntington Beach, Joy said.

The sergeant lagged behind the car and kept an eye on it, and officers were able to pull over the suspects on Center Street.

The driver, Armando Raul Hernandez-Perez, 26, of Aliso Viejo was dressed in all black and had a uniform-style shirt with an American flag patch on the shoulder, while the passenger, April Noemi Lopez-Fabian, 20, of Laguna Hills wore blue jeans and a black sweatshirt.

Inside the car, police said, toy weapons were found: a shotgun with an orange tip, an assault-style rifle and a scope.

Police wouldn’t speculate on the pair’s motive in this case, but said the motives for similar crimes include robbery.

“We don’t really ever see vigilante traffic enforcement,” Joy said.

Civilian vehicles are not allowed to use blue lights under any circumstances, Joy said. Forward-facing red lights are also a violation for such vehicles.

Either can lead to charges of impersonating an officer.

Both suspects were booked into Orange County Jail for felony conspiracy and misdemeanor impersonation of an officer, Joy said.

The CHP has received reports of similar suspicious stops and attempted stops and asked that anyone with information about this case call Officer Alberto Magallon or Officer Tom Joy at the CHP’s Westminster office at 714-892-4426.

Anonymous tips can be made to Orange County Crime Stoppers at 855-TIP-OCCS (855-847-6227).

Contact the writer: 714-796-7802 or jsudock@ocregister.com