Crook takes SUV for ride after cop leaves car running for coffee

A crook hopped in a NYPD highway patrol vehicle and took it for a spin after an absent-minded cop left the engine running to grab himself a cup of coffee.

Anibal Lugo, 48, drove the Jeep Tahoe with a loaded shotgun inside while the officer stepped in the Lydig Coffee Shop in Morris Park around 7 am.

"This is the embarrassing part - he goes into a coffee shop and leaves the vehicle running. The perp jumps into the car and takes off," the New York Daily News quoted a police source as saying.

The source explained: "They found the guy in the terminal, walking around with the cop's cuffs, clipboard and some other stuff. He kind of presented himself. He was acting a little erratic."

Lugo, who has history of theft and petit larceny arrests, later told authorities he meant no harm and "just wanted to go for a ride".

He was charged with criminal possession of stolen property, grand larceny, and impersonating a police officer.

The officer was not identified.