An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) supervisor based in Cincinnati was arrested earlier this month after allegedly strangling his girlfriend, the Cincinnati CityBeat reported.
Samuel Saxon,47, the assistant special agent in charge of ICE for the Cincinnati region, is accused of putting the woman he lived with in a chokehold, “causing visible injuries on her neck,” in the hallway of his apartment on Dec. 5. However, the woman who was allegedly choked didn’t cooperate with the police.
An eyewitness told police she heard a woman screaming in the hallway of her apartment building and a man with a chokehold around the woman’s neck, dragging her into an apartment. The witness said she heard more screaming in the apartment.
The prosecutor’s office said when police arrived, they saw bruises on the woman’s chest that are consistent with being forcibly grabbed by the chest and neck.
Saxon’s relationship with the victim reportedly began when she was 18 and he was in his early 40s. Police testified in court that they were called to the couple’s apartment nearly two dozen times over the last year and a half. Prosecutors also noted that the woman has reported serious injuries in past incidents, including a broken nose in 2018 and a broken pelvis in April.
Saxon has been charged with one count of felonious assault, two counts of strangulation and domestic violence. He pleaded not guilty. On Friday, a county judge set his bond at $400,000, citing the severity of the alleged conduct.
Saxon’s attorney said in court that he was recently notified while in custody that he has been placed on suspension.
“This is an agency that demonizes immigrants who have committed no crimes, yet it fails to police its own ranks,” an Ohio immigrant advocate told the CityBeat in response to Saxon’s arrest. “The hypocrisy is breathtaking, and the threat to public safety is clear.”
