A 46‑year‑old man was arrested Sunday in Miami after allegedly posing as an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent and intimidating voters at a polling site. The suspect, Danilo Alves Silva, was seen wearing an ICE raid jacket, hat, tactical boots, sunglasses and a face mask while walking around the Miami Dade College Kendall Campus, where Brazilian nationals were voting in their home country’s presidential election.
The polling locations were not set up for U.S. elections but served the sizable Brazilian community in the greater Miami area. Witnesses reported that many voters were visibly frightened, fearing that the impersonator might interfere with the election or even deport participants. Detectives from the Miami‑Dade Sheriff’s Office Homeland Security Bureau intervened after Silva allegedly responded aggressively to several people who confronted him.
Silva admitted to detectives that he was not an ICE agent and described the outfit as a “prop costume” he had bought on Amazon. He claimed he had arrived at the polling site wearing a jersey to vote, then changed into the costume in his car to observe how people would react. While in a police vehicle, he reportedly told detectives, “I will get you paid if you let me go,” and “We will pay you money.”
He was charged on Monday with prohibited intimidation or suppression of voters, unlawful use of a police badge or insignia, conspiracy to commit bribery and threatening a public servant to influence their performance. The incident comes a month before the U.S. midterm elections, amid broader concerns about potential ICE or National Guard involvement at polling places, a scenario previously mentioned by President Donald Trump in May.
