Police in the US have arrested the owner of a company called Whoops Towing as he tried to haul off an undercover vehicle.

Oregon State Police say they had received reports that a towing business operating without the required certificate was posting its own impoundment warning signs in car parks and using a spotter to generate tows.

Police say they parked the unmarked vehicle as part of the investigation, and 35-year-old Michael Alan Selmer of Falls City showed up in the tow truck.

They arrested him on charges of failure to register as a sex offender and violating parole terms.

The towing investigation is being reviewed by Marion County prosecutors.

A call to Whoops Towing went unanswered, and it is unclear if Selmer has a lawyer.

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