A man from South Carolina was detained on suspicion of impersonating an ICE officer after authorities claim that he was seen on camera confronting a Latino man in a pickup truck and threatening to send him back to Mexico.
A 22-year-old male and two other individuals were charged with posing as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in a case similar to the one that followed the arrest at Temple University the following day, according to Philadelphia police.
A Latino civil rights group described the environment created by the Trump administration’s robust immigration enforcement at the U.S.-Mexico border and major U.S. cities as hazardous.
In reference to the man who was arrested in South Carolina, Roman Palomares, national president of the League of United Latin American Citizens, stated, “I think this is just the beginning, unless we object to it, unless we bring this out and have other folks see how this gentleman here will be prosecuted.”
After turning himself in at the Sullivan’s Island Police Department on Friday, 34-year-old Sean Michael-Emmrich Johnson was taken into custody. He was charged with two misdemeanors, one count of felony kidnapping, and impersonating a law enforcement official. The police department announced Monday that it had acquired warrants accusing Johnson of two additional kidnapping charges.
According to Deputy Police Chief Monty L. Anders, the pickup truck included three Latino men. He said their names were not being made public and none of them were charged.
According to jail records, Johnson posted bond and was released on Saturday. He is scheduled to appear in court next month. A phone number provided for him was unreachable on Monday for comment.
On Wednesday, Sullivan’s Island police received a complaint regarding someone driving a car without a license. A criminal investigation into the 911 caller, whom they identified as Johnson, was initiated after they learned about the unsettling viral video, they later stated in a news release.
They said that this footage showed potential criminal activity by the caller that was not first reported to the police while they were on the site.
Anders claimed that although the video was only a few minutes long and did not capture the complete episode, he was unable to provide any additional commentary.
A white male, identified by the police as Johnson, is seen standing at the driver’s-side window of a car with a Latino in the driver’s seat in the widely shared social media footage. A man in the passenger seat captured the footage.
The white man asks the driver whether he is from Mexico while the window is down and informs him, “You’re going back to Mexico.”
The white man is also seen in the video removing the truck’s ignition keys, hanging them in front of the driver, and saying, with a sarcastic accent, “You cannot drive.” You don’t own a driver’s license.
He warns the man that he cannot drive a car without a license and that police are on their way. “You are going back,” he says.
The man at the window answers, “No, no, no, it’s over,” as the man in the driver’s seat holds up a cellphone to him at one point. It’s finished.
You can hear the man in the driver’s seat speaking Spanish while holding a cellphone in front of him. Then, “Hey, El Chapo,” says the man at his window. “Don’t be speaking that pig Latin in my f,” the man at his window tells the driver as he continues to speak Spanish.Bro, —— nation.
He goes on to say, “Don’t be speaking that pig Latin here.” This is America. In America, we speak English.
“We speak English, English,” he repeats after slapping the man’s smartphone out of his grasp.
Is it in English? No, he adds later, “This is my job,” to the man behind the wheel. My truck is this one. This nation is mine.
Additionally, he informs a second man near the car window that the driver doesn’t even have a license and twice claims to have his key.
According to the police department, warrants for Johnson, who resides in Huger, which is around 30 miles from Charleston, were acquired following a thorough review of the video and witness interviews.
Since South Carolina is one of the few states lacking statutes against hate crimes, Johnson is not charged with hate crimes, according to deputy police chief Andes.
Andes stated on Monday that the charges we brought against him were as comprehensive as the law permitted.
LULAC’s Palomares praised the police force for bringing the most charges possible.
According to Palomares, this is an illustration of the hazardous environment that our community is currently experiencing.
According to court documents, Aidan Steigelmann was accused of conspiring to impersonate a public servant in the Pennsylvania case. Two guys entered a residence hall at Temple University on Saturday night after posing as ICE officers, according to a Philadelphia police spokesperson.
According to the authorities, a third man showed there, and the three of them departed together.
Shortly after, authorities were notified that three men were posing as ICE officers at a local Insomnia Cookies store. Steigelmann was taken into custody, but two of the males drove off in an SUV.
The two additional men were not identified by the police. The three allegedly donned black shirts with the words “ICE” on the back and “Police” on the front.
The three males at the cookie shop were the same men that were turned away from Johnson & Hardwick Residence Hall earlier that evening, Temple University said in a statement.
According to the school, a third man recorded the encounter, while two of the men pretended to be law enforcement. The school, which did not name the kid, said that a student had been placed under temporary suspension while an investigation was conducted.
According to the school, there have been no reports of federal ICE officers on campus from the Philadelphia Police Department or Temple’s Department of Public Safety. The fact that such behavior allegedly took place on our campus is extremely upsetting and disheartening.
The Defender Association of Philadelphia, which represents Steigelmann, declined to comment on Monday.