Scott Brown's Brother Arrested for Posing as a Cop

Former Sen. Scott Brown's brother has been charged with impersonating a police officer after authorities say he was walking around in a bulletproof vest and stopping boaters on the Connecticut coast, according to news reports.

Bruce W. Browne, 46, stopped three boats on Thursday and asked for their registrations and safety licenses, state police told the Associated Press. Browne reportedly had three loaded handguns and handcuffs in his car, along with a police vest with a Transportation Security Administration badge.

Former Sen. Scott Brown's brother, Bruce Browne, was arrested after allegedly posing as a police officer. (Image source: WCVB-TV)

Browne told the Wolcott Police Department he was the former Massachusetts Republican senator's brother and added an extra "e" to his name years ago, according to WCVB-TV.

Browne was also charged with breach of peace, interfering with a police officer and possession of a dangerous weapon, according to the AP. He was released on $50,000 bond and is due back in court on Aug. 22.

The AP reported a resident spotted a man walking around carrying a gun and wearing military-style clothing, and had been seen earlier near a vehicle that looked like a police car. Police said Browne admitted to walking around with a gun belt and a loaded pistol, and said he owned the car, a blue Ford Crown Victoria.

Police said Browne commandeered a boat by identifying himself as a Coast Guard official, and presented an expired Coast Guard identification card from when he was in the Coast Guard reserves, according to the AP.

Brown, who was defeated by Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren in November, told WCVB he is estranged from his brother and has not seen him since his father's funeral in December.

"I feel bad for his kids and his wife," Brown told WCVB. "It's too bad. Obviously, he's going to have to answer to the charges. The good news is that no one, it appears, no one was hurt."

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