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North Carolina man impersonates ICE agent and threatens deportation to coerce lady into having intercourse: police

A North Carolina man has been charged with multiple sex crimes for allegedly breaking into a Raleigh-area motel on Sunday while posing as a federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agent (ICE) and threatening a woman inside with deportation if she didn’t engage in sexual acts with him.

During the alleged break-in, Carl Thomas Bennett, Jr., 37, used a phony business card with a badge and “threatened to deport the victim if she did not have sex with him,” according to arrest documents.

Bennett has been hit with nine charges, according to court records, including breaking and entering, posession of cocaine, kidnapping, rape, and impersonating law enforcement.

Bennett has previous arrests in February and June of 2024 for trespassing
Bennett has previous arrests in February and June of 2024 for trespassing (Wake County Bureau of Forensic Services)

He appeared in court on Monday, and his petition for release was denied.

He’s being detained in the Wake County Detention Center and does not appear to have entered a plea. He has been ordered to appear in court in February.

Bennett has previous charges dating to February and June of 2024 for alleged trespassing offenses, according to court records.

People are regularly charged with federal crimes for impersonating immigration officers as part of attempts at exploitation.

The Independent has contacted ICE for comment.

Nikki Barin Baena, of the local immigrant advocacy group Siembra NC, told WRAL the allegations show how the Trump administration’s campaign of mass deportations, as well as ICE’s own checkered record, is creating a “perfect storm” of conditions for local exploitation.

“This is kind of a perfect storm what’s happening right now and it’s opening up opportunities for people who are not doing any kind of law enforcement to take advantage of people in terrible ways,” Baena said

“People wouldn’t be surprised that an ICE agent acted in an inappropriate way because they often do act in inappropriate ways to get information out of people,” she added.

The North Carolina allegations come after a Missouri man was charged last week with burglary, harassment, assault, and impersonating law enforcement for allegedly busting through someone’s door, demanding to see their immigration paperwork, and threatening to pull out a gun.

As The Independent has reported, communities around the country are reporting an atmosphere of fear and anxiety, as federal immigration agents carry out Trump’s goal of conducting the largest mass deportations in U.S. history.

In addition to individuals impersonating ICE agents, some fear the real agency, which has a record of controversial tactics and alleged abuse.

Hundreds of immigrants have reported being sexually abused in ICE facilities in recent years, and most cases aren’t investigated, a 2023 PBS investigation found.

Civil rights advocates have also raised alarms about ICE’s past tactics of impersonating police officers to gain access to individuals for immigration raids, arguing it furthers confusion and fear for migrants considering engaging with law enforcement.

Source: independent.co.uk