Dummy police officer with speedgun fools drivers in Wiltshire
John Winskill saw the 6ft 6in humanoid figure listed on eBay for GBP50, then bought it, added a high-vis jacket and fake speeding gun, and stood it on the pavement near his home in Rushall. The 53-year-old retired army major stopped walking two of his children to school due to concerns over the safety of the road, and so decided to add 'Wilson' to the area as an unusual speeding deterrent. The fake copy wears a rubber human face mask and glasses - and is so realistic that people have stopped to ask him directions.
John didn't feel safe when walking his children to school - so he came up with a clever deterrent for speeding drivers (Image: SWNS) John claims that motorists passing through the 30mph zone have indeed started slowing down when they see Wilson. The strategic defence consultant said: "We had to take our life in our hands every morning walking down that footpath - so now we don't, we don't walk anymore.
"The whole point of walking to school is that it's good for the health and good to get fresh air, but it's just too dangerous." John, who served in the army for 15 years, sourced the mannequin from a tailor's shop in Hertfordshire. He dressed it up in a jacket, a white motorcycle helmet, his wife Lisa's old motorcycle leathers, and his old regimental mess boots, then hung it on a telegraph pole on private land at the roadside.
The father-of-four said that he doesn't want people to think he's "some grumpy old git who's just miserable". He added: "It's not that at all - I quite like some of the humour about him." Drivers start slowing down when they see 'Wilson' the mannequin (Image: SWNS)
John was involved in a fatal car accident and wants to help prevent another tragedy Back in 2013, a taxi collided with him head-on while he was driving a Land Rover support vehicle at the Dakar Rally in Peru. He and his passengers survived, but the driver and a passenger from the taxi - who were not wearing seatbelts - died of catastrophic injuries. John said: "That impact has never, I don't think ever will leave me, frankly.
It finished me off for the best part of three and a half years. "The death of children or the injury of children is probably the most traumatic thing that anybody, certainly a parent, could imagine and it's just so unnecessary. "I know people are busy, people have got to get places, but if you're five minutes later than you were going to be, is it actually going to make a difference?
No. "So that's why I've done it; it's very much a deterrent. "It's designed to get people to think, to look down at their dashboard, glimpse their speed, and just have that moment thinking is that real?
"We all do it as road users. I do it, as soon as I see somebody in high-vis yellow, it doesn't matter what they're doing, you slow down because you're not quite sure. So I thought, well, I'll just extrapolate that into the village and it works."
John believes one of the biggest dangers in the village is delivery drivers. "These guys have got so many deliveries to do in a day," he said. "They're under permanent time pressure - they're always looking for an address.
"They do come really fast along the road and they've big sticky-out wing mirrors and they just scare the living daylights out of us."
He said the local police inspector is aware and supports the idea - but warned Wilson should not be placed close to any bends to avoid drivers slamming on the brakes.
Wiltshire Police said Wilson is not impersonating a police officer and doesn't appear to be committing any offences.