Old Saybrook — An employee with the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection is accused of impersonating an officer last month when he used a state vehicle to stop and detain three minors, police said Tuesday.

Old Saybrook police said Richard Swan, 59, who lives in Old Saybrook, was driving a vehicle equipped with red and blue emergency lights when he stopped the youths on April 27. He displayed a badge and took the juveniles' identification, which he then provided to actual police officers, the report said.

When Swan called Old Saybrook police during the incident, he identified himself over the phone as a "DEEP officer," the report said.

However, Old Saybrook police say Swan is not a certified police officer in Connecticut and doesn't have the authority in his position to make traffic stops.

"It is disturbing that an individual would violate the public's trust by misrepresenting themselves as a police officer and even worse to juveniles," Old Saybrook Police Chief Michael A. Spera said. "We will not tolerate this unsafe behavior in Old Saybrook and I fully support the victims' pursuit of justice after their frightening experience."

A DEEP spokesperson said Swan was placed on administrative leave on May 2 pending the outcome of the criminal investigation and the department's own investigation. Swan is the assistant division director for the Emergency Response Unit.

Swan was charged Tuesday with impersonating a police officer and will appear June 11 in state Superior Court in Middletown.