A woman in Florida impersonated an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent to kidnap the wife of her ex-boyfriend from work.
Authorities say Latrance Battle, 52, showed up at a hotel chain where the woman works on April 10 and told her she was there to “pick her up,” according to a statement shared by the Bay County Sheriff’s Office on Facebook.
She reportedly wore “a black shirt with ICE printed on the front” and showed the woman a business card from the sheriff’s office.
At that point, the woman who is “currently in the process of becoming a legal United States resident”, went with Battle because she truly believed that Battle was a legitimate ICE agent.
The woman realized something was off when she attempted to reach out to her lawyer and husband but Battle allegedly “forcefully snatched” her phone away and began speaking negatively about her husband. Battle allegedly told her that now she had “to suffer the consequences of her husband’s actions.”
She grew even more suspicious when Battle drove them to the Bridge Plaza Apartments because she initially told her they were going to the sheriff’s office.
At the apartment complex, Battle instructed the woman to follow her to a nearby unit. Noticing “a clear tackle box and other stuff” in the trunk of the car, the woman seized the opportunity to run when Battle went inside.
She approached a nearby man and used his phone to contact law enforcement and her husband. He was able to identify Battle after she described her to him.
Battle was arrested by police on Friday April 11. She was allegedly fleeing to Alabama when she was detained.
Battle was taken into custody on charges of kidnapping in commission of a felony, robbery by sudden snatching, impersonating a law enforcement officer in commission of a felony and felony violation of probation, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by the Miami Herald.
