CNN
–
The authorities of at least three states have arrested individuals who allegedly passed through agents of the Customs Immigration and Control Service (ICE, in English) at a time when true ICE agents have intensified the application efforts of the application of the application of the application of the application of the application of the application of the application of the application of the application of the application of the application of the application of the Immigration Law under the Trump government.
In South Carolina, Sean-Michael Johnson, 33, was accused of kidnapping and posing as an ICE agent after allegedly stopping a group of Latin men along a Charleston County road. Johnson is accused of “voluntarily and illegally presenting as an ICE agent and stopping a vehicle of individuals so that they did not move,” according to judicial records.
The incident, which was recorded by one of the victims, occurred in Sullivan’s Island, near Charleston, on January 29.
“They have discovered them all!” Johnson heard in the video. “Where are you from, from Mexico? Are you from Mexico? You will return to Mexico. ”
In the video, Johnson is seen taking the driver’s keys, mocking his accent, while shaking the car keys on his face. At one point he is seen trying to take his phone.
The driver calls a friend and, speaking in Spanish, says: “I don’t know man, he is saying immigration.”
“Do not speak that Latin language-groove in my Jo *** or country!” Says Johnson, throwing the phone hand in hand.
“It’s crazy. He is a racist, friend, ”one heard one of the passengers of the vehicle, another of the victims in Spanish.
Johnson was accused of three kidnapping positions and one position each of impersonating an agent of the law, a minor theft, assault and aggression, in accordance with the records of the prison.
CNN has not been able to locate Johnson’s lawyer. In court on Saturday, the public defender said that Johnson deeply regretted his actions.
Johnson left prison during the weekend, and in an appearance before the court on Saturday his parents begged the judge to say that his son has mental health problems and “has tried to get help” in the past, “but he has to Continue with that therapy, ”according to WCIV, CNN affiliate.
CNN has contacted the ICE to obtain his comments.
The founder and president of the Spanish Association of Charleston told CNN that he does not believe it is an isolated incident.
“We hear a lot of Hispanics who are in the spotlight. It’s everyday something, ”said Enrique Grace to CNN. “I don’t think this is an isolated case, it was simply captured in video. It’s quite sad to see it. ”
Cases of ICE impersonation occur at a time when President Donald Trump has quickly mobilized broad strips of the federal government to arrest and detain undocumented immigrants in the United States as part of a broader strategy to consolidate a large apparatus application of application of application The law.
The administration has sent soldiers between the United States and Mexico, has used military airplanes to repatriate those who have recently crossed the border and deployed people of multiple federal agencies, including the dependents of the Department of Justice, to increase the operations of Application of the Immigration Law.
“Anyway, immigrants are the subject of scam , sowing co -director NC.
A community organization born of frustration with promulgated immigration policies during Trump’s first mandate, Sowing NC focuses on empowering the Latin communities of North Carolina through comprehensive initiatives of civic commitment and social justice.
Sowing NC is actively fighting the supplant of ICE personnel and reducing the fear of the community through the creation and distribution of multimedia educational resources, including graphics and videos, and the organization of state presentations with the theme “know their rights” that teach Latin residents to distinguish between the legitimate federal agents of the law and the possible supplanters.
In another case of impersonation, in Philadelphia, the Police accused a student at the University of Temple in relation to the alleged supplant of ICE agents on the campus. In the incident, which occurred on Saturday night, three individuals, two of them with t -shirts in which “police” and “ICE” were read in white letters, tried to enter a university residence on the campus, according to Temple’s University In a statement.
After refusing the entrance to the residence, they were found later causing disruption in a business in the area, according to the university.
The Philadelphia Police arrested a 22 -year -old student, accusing him of impersonating a public official, and the university said he has been put in “provisional suspension.” Two other suspects involved in the incident fled the place in a light -colored SUV, according to the Philadelphia Police Department.
The Temple statement followed an ad at the beginning of the week by reacting to Trump’s decrees, including mass deportation plans of undocumented immigrants.
“The uncertainty of the current moment has also led to an increase in rumors, which can be rapidly amplified through social networks,” said the president of the University of Temple, John Fry, in a statement on Wednesday. “Please know that neither the Public Security Department of Temple nor the Philadelphia Police Department have reports that federal immigration and customs agents (ICE) are on the campus.”
Meanwhile, in Raleigh, North Carolina, Carl Thomas Bennett was arrested for allegedly impersonating an ICE agent and sexually assaulting a woman in a 6 -award motel threatening her with deporting her if she did not comply, according to Wral, Affiliate of CNN.
Police reports indicate that Bennett, 37, “threatened to deport the victim if she did not have sex with him” and “showed a business card with a plaque,” according to Wral.
Bennett was denied freedom on bail and was assigned an ex officio lawyer, as stated in the judicial records, WBTV, affiliated with CNN, reported.
CNN contacted the Raleigh Police Department to obtain their comments.
Incidents show the importance of “safe space” policies, according to Maribel Hernández Rivera, director of Government Policy and Affairs, Frontera and Immigration of the American Union of Civil Liberties (ACLU).
“It is important that immigrant communities feel safe, that they can approach the forces of the order and denounce anything that is happening and when people do not feel safe, not only makes people who are immigrants less safe, but also that It makes us all less safe, ”said Hernández Rivera.
Under Trump’s administration, federal immigration authorities are now authorized to arrest people and carry out application actions in and near places such as churches and schools, marking a change in long -standing policy to avoid so -called sensitive areas . Hernández said that the change in politics not only threatens public safety, but discourages people who need forces of order forces or medical care suppliers to seek it.
After watching video Hernández Rivera said that he also showed the effect that White House policies are having throughout the country, not only for migrant communities, but also for everyone else.
“What we are seeing here is that we have a leadership at the top that dehumanizes people who are immigrants and now this is the result of that dehumanization,” said Hernández Rivera. “You end up having a violation of people’s rights, people see and listen to this and feel emboldened to go against immigrants.”
