History Main / BluffingTheAuthorities

* ''{{Film/Clue}}'': When The Cop becomes understandably suspicious of the goings-on at the mansion, [[ButtMonkey Mr. Green]] is commandeered to give a "tour" while the others set up the corpses to make it look as if they're still alive. The results are hilarious, partly because of the cop and Green's reactions to Mrs. White and Mr. Boddy apparently making out and Colonel Mustard romancing the dead cook (while poor Mrs. Peacock is stuck on her other side on a window ledge). Professor Plum and Miss Scarlet get off the lightest since they get to make out while pretending the motorist is [[JustForPun "dead drunk"]] who will have "a long black car" sent to take him home.

-->'''Han''': Uh, we had a slight weapons malfunction, but, uh... everything's perfectly all right now. We're fine, we're all fine here now, thank you. ''[beat]'' How are you? ''[[[CantBelieveIJustSaidThat winces]]]''

-->'''Han''': Uh, we had a slight weapons malfunction, but, uh... everything's perfectly all right now. We're fine, we're all fine here now, thank you. ''[beat]'' How are you?

->"We never rented a house in Sedona.\\
We didn't see Camille the day she died.\\
We haven't been on our boat in some years now.\\
So we don't care what you found inside."\\
And it's our word [...]\\
Against theirs.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheIronGiant'': When paranoiac JerkAss Kent Mansley finally convinces the US Army that the title charqacter is loose in Rockwell, Maine, they arrive at Dean [=McCoppin's=] studio to find a huge robotic figure. Dean explains that it's leftover from a defunct garage, and he's making a modern art sculpture from it. General Rogard glares at Kent and growls, "Mansley, you idiot."

* In ''Film/{{Collateral}}'', Jamie Foxx plays a taxi driver who is forced to drive a hitman around to kill several people. One of the victims falls out of a window onto his taxi, causing significant damage. The pair are later pulled over by two officers suspicious of the damage, and the hitman threatens to kill the policemen if Jamie Foxx is unable to talk his way out of the situation. He claims that the damage came from hitting a deer and though the policemen appear skeptical, they receive another call and let him off with a warning.
* ''Film/DieHard'': After John [=McClane=] calls the Los Angeles Police Department for help, sergeant Al Powell stops by the building to check out his claim. One of the terrorists pretends to be a security guard and allays his suspicions, so Powell starts to leave. [=McClane=] has to throw a body through a window so it drops on the front of the police car to alert Powell to the fact that something is seriously wrong.

* In ''Series/BreakingBad'', Gus Fring is questioned by the police about the murder of his onetime criminal underling [[spoiler:Gale Boetticher]] after trace evidence showed that Gus had been at [[spoiler:Gale's]] house not long before his death. Gus, being TheChessmaster and a VillainWithGoodPublicity, spins the story and claims that after years of not talking, [[spoiler:Gale]] had contacted Gus recently, invited him over, and tried to get him to invest in something that seemed shady. Gus refused, and then read about the murder several days later. Because Gus has such good publicity and is so methodical about covering his tracks, everyone except Hank buys it.

* ''{{WebAnimation/RWBY}}'': When the heroes' freshly-hijacked airship is unexpectedly detected on military radar and subsequently hailed, [[CoolOldLady Maria Calavera]] uses her knowledge of air traffic jargon to pretend to a pilot undergoing minor technical difficulties. [[spoiler:[[RealityEnsues They are immediately ordered to land]]; as the traffic controller puts it, "Jargon was fine, but our pilots aren't elderly women."]]

* ''Film/TommyBoy'': Tommy has been driving as Richard drinks. When cops try to pull them over Tommy, knowing that they will never believe he wasn't drinking, starts driving even ''more'' erratically, then pulls over and runs out of the car pretending to be attacked by bees. The officers, both of whom are allergic to bees, make a hasty retreat.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheIronGiant'': when paranoiac JerkAss Kent Mansley finally convinces the US Army that the title charqacter is loose in Rockwell, Maine, they arrive at Dean [=McCoppin's=] studio to find a huge robotic figure. Dean explains that it's leftover from a defunct garage, and he's making a modern art sculpture from it. General Rogard glares at Kent and growls, "Mansley, you idiot."

* ''Film/DieHard''. After John [=McClain=] calls the Los Angeles Police Department for help, sergeant Al Powell stops by the building to check out his claim. One of the terrorists pretends to be a security guard and allays his suspicions, so Powell starts to leave. [=McClain=] has to throw a body through a window so it drops on the front of the police car to alert Powell to the fact that something is seriously wrong.

-->'''Han''': Uh, we had a slight weapons malfunction, but, uh...everything's perfectly all right now. We're fine, we're all fine here now, thank you. ''[beat]'' How are you?

** Sheriff Swan finds out that the mayor (previously known as [[Disney/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarves the Evil Queen]]) has embezzled public funds in "Fruit of the Poisonous Tree." Swan confronts the mayor, but she turns it around by claiming she took the funds to fund a playground for the school without bringing attention to herself. This ultimately ends up doing wonders for the mayor's reputation, just as she intended, since she sent the informant that made Sheriff Swan aware of the funds in the first place.
** After the Wicked Witch is presumed dead in the season 3 finale, the sheriff, Prince Charming, immediately assumes Rumplestiltskin is behind the murder. Thankfully, Rumple has given his wife, [[Disney/BeautyAndTheBeast Belle]], a knife that forces to tell the truth. She uses the knife and under its power, Rumple reasserts his innocence and suggests the Witch managed to retain a bit of her magic and used it to destroy herself to activate a curse. His bluff? The knife was a fake Rumple planted so he could gain his wife's trust without having to change his nefarious ways.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' episode "City on the Edge of Forever". After Kirk and Spock go back in time to 1930's New York City they're about to steal some clothing to replace their Enterprise uniforms but meet a police officer and have to explain Spock's pointed Vulcan ears. They come up with a story that Spock is Chinese and had a childhood accident involving a mechanical rice picker and plastic surgery, but the cop doesn't buy it.

** Sheriff Swan finds out that the mayor (previously known as [[Literature/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarves the Evil Queen]]) has embezzled public funds in "Fruit of the Poisonous Tree." Swan confronts the mayor, but she turns it around by claiming she took the funds to fund a playground for the school without bringing attention to herself. This ultimately ends up doing wonders for the mayor's reputation, just as she intended, since she sent the informant that made Sheriff Swan aware of the funds in the first place.

* In a tragic example, Konerak Sinthasomphone, one of Jeffrey Dahmer's victims, escaped from Dahmer's apartment while Dahmer was out buying beer. Konerak was naked and disoriented, having previously been drugged by Dahmer, yet the police accepted Dahmer's claim that the 14-year-old boy was his homosexual lover and let him take Konerak back to his apartment and murder him.
** It may not be bluffing the authorities so much as the authorities looking the other way so they would not have to get involved with a case involving a homosexual lover's dispute.

Often done by seeking RefugeInAudacity. Compare PoliceBrutalityGambit, in which the police are framed. Sister trope to (and may overlap with) CutHimselfShaving, which is an attempt to provide an innocent explanation for an injury. Can also overlap with OfCorpseHesAlive, when a dead body is disguised as a living person, often to avoid suspicion.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': Parodied.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' gives us this example:

* In ''TheSuiteLifeOfZackAndCody'' episode "Cody Goes to Camp", when London is driving slowly with Zack, Maddie, and Muriel on the interstate, they get pulled over by a cop and is given a warning because London is still learning how to drive. But when Muriel starts driving really fast and they get pulled over by the same cop, Muriel and London makes up the excuse that Zack recently ate some bad chili cheese dogs and he needs to go to the hospital which the cop believes because this happened before.

* In the Show Of Hands song "Transported", the protagonists have car troubles while hauling a trailer full of stolen sheep, and are approached by a cop. One pretends he's calling a tow truck and instead phones in a report of an armed robbery at a nearby gas station. The officer is called away and they escape.

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* Attempted by Omar, Stretch and Dizzy in Nelvana Pictures' ''WesternAnimation/RockAndRule'' upon arriving at a Nuke York City checkpoint. The entire city is closed to inbound traffic while the electric grid is down. Omar claims that he's a lawman bringing scientists to correct the problem. The LanternJawOfJustice patrolman isn't fooled, and arrests all three. This actually gets them into Nuke York, though they have to be bailed out of jail.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheIronGiant'': when paranoiac JerkAss Kent Mansley finally convinces the US Army that the title charqacter is loose in Rockwell, Maine, they arrive at Dean [=McCoppin's=] studio to find a huge robotic figure. Dean explains that it's leftover from a defunct garage, and he's making a modern art sculpture from it. General Rogard glares at Kent and growls, "Mansley, you idiot."

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* In the Show Of Hands song "Transported", the protagonists have car troubles while hauling a trailer full of stolen sheep, and are approached by a cop. One pretends he's calling a tow truck and instead phones in a report of an armed robbery at a nearby gas station. The officer is called away and they escape.

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* In a tragic example, Konerak Sinthasomphone, one of Jeffrey Dahmer's victims, escaped from Dahmer's apartment while Dahmer was out buying beer. Konerak was naked and disoriented, having previously been drugged by Dahmer, yet the police accepted Dahmer's claim that the 14-year-old boy was his homosexual lover and let him take Konerak back to his apartment and murder him.