NJ Police Organization Issues Warning On Toy Guns Turned Into Real Weapons

CLARK, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- A national police organization based in New Jersey is warning all police officers to be on alert.

At first glance, a toy water gun confiscated by the Indianapolis police looks completely harmless, but inside lurks something extremely dangerous.

"They've converted a toy gun into a real gun by putting the actual weapon inside the toy," explained Joe Occhipinti, with the National Police Defense Foundation.

Occhipinti said since Michael Brown was shot and killed by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, they've seen more criminals trying to confuse officers with toy guns that are actually real weapons, CBS2's Christine Sloan reported.

"Because they realize that police are under close scrutiny in light of these recent police shootings and now they'e using this more to confuse the police -- 'should I shoot should I not shoot?'" Occhipinti said.

The Baltimore Police Department sent out a warning about the dangerous toy guns, telling cops not to let their guard down.

Police in the Tri-State Area haven't seen any incidents, Sloan reported. But telling the difference between real and fake guns is a serious problem for officers.

Back in 2008, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg tried to get brightly-colored guns banned.

"Police often times have to make a split second decision and if they see something and they're not sure is it a toy or a gun, they're going to hesitate," said Occhipinti.

And hesitation could mean making the wrong decision, Sloan reported.

The NYPD and New Jersey police departments have also been sending their officers the alerts on toy guns turned into real weapons.