A probationer accused of impersonating a police officer in the hopes of getting a free haircut posted $50,000 bail and was released from jail Saturday.
Brandon Joseph Vielkind of Riverside, 25, was arrested at about 1:40 p.m. Friday outside the Much Love Barber Shop, 4950 Pierce St., according to the Riverside City Police.
Officers were called to the location after Vielkind allegedly walked into the business wearing a tactical vest, hat and badge and asked for a free haircut, but then claimed to be conducting an investigation and became erratic, police said.
After he was taken into custody, officers searched Vielkind's vehicle and allegedly found two airsoft rifles, a pistol-grip airsoft shotgun modified to resemble a realistic weapon and several patches with law enforcement insignias, police said.
As police ran a background check of Vielkind, an officer recognized him as one of two brothers who broke into Harvest Church in Irvine last year armed with an airsoft gun and vandalized property inside, police said.
Vielkind pleaded guilty to burglary, vandalism and possession of an assault weapon and was sentenced to 180 days in that case.
