TOM WAITS

The Downtown Train star was playing an intimate set at El Paso's Plaza Theatre on Thursday (26Jun08) when a female officer approached the singer on stage.

And Waits thought it was a joke - telling the officer: "I paid all those tickets," and quipping, "She was dead when I got there."

However, the policewoman, Susie Boyd, hadn't come to arrest the star - she was there to award him the city's official key and a plaque of recognition.

And the usually downbeat singer was seemingly moved by the presentation, telling fans, "This is a first for me, a real first."

Source: WENN