CNN
—
“Editor’s note: This story contains profane and hateful language.
Authorities in at least three states have arrested individuals allegedly impersonating Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers at a time when real ICE agents have ramped up immigration enforcement efforts under the Trump administration, adding to existing fears of law enforcement among migrant communities.
In South Carolina, Sean-Michael Johnson, 33, was charged with kidnapping and impersonating a police officer after allegedly detaining a group of Latino men along a Charleston County road. Johnson is accused of “willfully and unlawfully presenting himself as an ICE Agent and detaining a vehicle of individuals from moving,” according to court records.
The incident, which was recorded by one of the victims, took place on Sullivan’s Island near Charleston on January 29.
“You all got caught!” Johnson is heard saying on the video. “Where are you from, Mexico? You from Mexico? You’re going back to Mexico!”
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โEditorโs note: This story contains profane and hateful language.
Authorities in at least three states have arrested individuals allegedly impersonating Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers at a time when real ICE agents have ramped up immigration enforcement efforts under the Trump administration, adding to existing fears of law enforcement among migrant communities.
In South Carolina, Sean-Michael Johnson, 33, was charged with kidnapping and impersonating a police officer after allegedly detaining a group of Latino men along a Charleston County road. Johnson is accused of โwillfully and unlawfully presenting himself as an ICE Agent and detaining a vehicle of individuals from moving,โ according to court records.
The incident, which was recorded by one of the victims, took place on Sullivanโs Island near Charleston on January 29.
โYou all got caught!โ Johnson is heard saying on the video. โWhere are you from, Mexico? You from Mexico? Youโre going back to Mexico!โ
In the video, Johnson is seen taking the driverโs keys, mocking the driverโs accent, while jiggling the car keys in his face. At one point he is seen trying to take the driverโs phone.
The driver calls a friend and, speaking Spanish, says, โI donโt know man, heโs saying immigration.โ
โNow donโt be speaking that pig-Latin in my f**king country!โ Johnson says, knocking the phone out of his hand.
โHeโs crazy. Heโs a racist, man,โ one of the passengers in the vehicle, another victim, can be heard saying in Spanish.โฆโ
cnn.com/2025/02/04/us/ice-impeโฆ
Martodonna ๐ป
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •Bart Champagne ON6BC
in reply to Martodonna ๐ป • • •Depends on how you look at it, but technically WW3 is already ongoing.
In UA they're fighting with actual weapons, rest of EU the energy and information systems are under attack.
And in the USA they're prepping a fire sale.
I'd stock up on food and withdraw money from the bank.
David August โ๐
in reply to Bart Champagne ON6BC • • •@ChampersBE @MartKroS pushback. There is not digging in an individual can do to weather WW3 in the atomic age. Nothing. So donโt let it get there.
Fight back. Burn your resignation to defeat down and then pushback. Defeat and despair are seductive, and destructive. Shun them.
#USpol #coup
Jasper ๐ reshared this.
๐๐ช๐บashtime๐ช๐บ๐
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •Wieke
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •David August โ๐ reshared this.
Jackie ๐๐ณ๏ธโโง๏ธโญ
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •hsolerkalinovski
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •David August โ๐
in reply to hsolerkalinovski • • •@hsolerkalinovski I have an actor I need to coach in a few minutes as so just answer briefly, sorry if it it terse.
It is not disproportional. The Executive Order is trying to stand in for actual law and is trying to grant powers the Constitution does not allow it to.
It must be pushed back against, and the overstep stopped.
hsolerkalinovski
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •I agree that excessive power centralization at the hands of the president (instead of agencies) is a step towards tiranny.
I just don't think the US is at that point yet where fundamental institutions of democracy are at the edge of collapse, like they were in Germany at that sad point in time.
Besides, US has been a democracy for 100+ years, I doubt it will suddenly fall after a few weeks of a lunatic's mandate.
David August โ๐
in reply to hsolerkalinovski • • •@hsolerkalinovski I like your optimism.
1) sadly, the last month's events are the culmination of decades of work by ill intended folks at pleases like the Heritage Foundation.
2) it took Germany about 53 days to stop being a democracy. The fact the US has been a democracy for almost 250 years may help, but so far it is unclear exactly how, or if it will in fact.
3) "fundamental institutions of democracy are at the edge of collapse..." now more than they ever have been at any time in history.
WayneOToole
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •David August โ๐
in reply to WayneOToole • • •@BWayneOT hi, your post is empty in my interface, so Iโm not sure what you may have said or posted.
Hope allโs well.
WayneOToole
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •@davidaugust, oh, sorry. Am new to Mastodon. I thought I shared your post but now realize it was a reply.
Apologizes
David August โ๐
in reply to WayneOToole • • •@BWayneOT no worries. Welcome to Mastodon.
It has a bit of a learning curve, but I find the extra control of our data, option to change servers when we want and take our follows and followers with us and the people having good conversations if weโll worth it.
Happy to help however I can.
WayneOToole
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •Bo Tally
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •David August โ๐
in reply to Bo Tally • • •@BoTally54 6 time zones, 330,000,000 people, ~3,800,000 square miles;
Only 1.2 million sworn law enforcement officers, and only 2.86 million US military personnel, including active duty, National Guard, and Reserves.
Martial law is likely not feasible nationwide. Simply cannot be accomplished even if all LEOs and soldiers were eager to try.
They want to accomplish what 80 years ago was tough (could have gone either way) only in a place with 28 times the space and 5 times the people.
Looking for explanationsโฆ
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •David August โ๐
in reply to Looking for explanationsโฆ • • •Looking for explanationsโฆ
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •David August โ๐
in reply to Looking for explanationsโฆ • • •Looking for explanationsโฆ
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •David August โ๐
in reply to Looking for explanationsโฆ • • •เฒเฒฟเฒฐเฒพเฒเณ ๐นโ๐พโ๐ฑ๐ต๐ธ (he/him)
Unknown parent • • •@strght Stop using shitty platforms. Poison the well of data brokers. Run uBlock Origin and Firefox. Close your Facebook, Instagram, etc accounts. Switch from Gmail to something else (Proton, Tuta, etc) - some of those alternatives (certainly Proton, but perhaps also others) have alternatives for Google Drive and Calendar as well. Stop buying from Amazon.
There are things we can all do.
Dark Phoenix ๐บ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฆ๐ฌ๐ฑ๐ต๐ฆ๐ต๐ธ๐ณ๏ธโ๐
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •David August โ๐ reshared this.
Elon Muksis ๐บ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ธ ๐ช๐บ
in reply to Dark Phoenix ๐บ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฆ๐ฌ๐ฑ๐ต๐ฆ๐ต๐ธ๐ณ๏ธโ๐ • • •Dark Phoenix ๐บ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฆ๐ฌ๐ฑ๐ต๐ฆ๐ต๐ธ๐ณ๏ธโ๐
in reply to Elon Muksis ๐บ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ธ ๐ช๐บ • • •I thought his favorite book was a collection of Hitler's speeches.
Elon Muksis ๐บ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ธ ๐ช๐บ
in reply to Dark Phoenix ๐บ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฆ๐ฌ๐ฑ๐ต๐ฆ๐ต๐ธ๐ณ๏ธโ๐ • • •Wombatadon
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •Der fiend drinnen.
Or for the rest of the world,
Ask not for whom the Bell tolls, it tolls for thee.
(John Donne)
David August โ๐ reshared this.
mmby
in reply to David August โ๐ • • •in a few years:
Greater United States of America