A minor fender bender in the parking garage of a west Houston apartment complex turned into something far more unsettling after a man who wasn't even involved in the crash allegedly told a shaken family he was an immigration agent and began demanding their personal information. Houston police have charged 48-year-old Majid Shaheed Mohammed with impersonating a public servant, and his bond has been set at $20,000.
According to court documents cited by ABC13 Houston, Mohammed is accused of pretending to be an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent after a woman backed into another vehicle in the garage. The woman's son told the station his mother hit another car, and that a man who had nothing to do with the collision stepped in and identified himself as an ICE agent. Dash cam video the family provided to the outlet captures the unidentified man declaring, “I am ICE.”
Per the same account, the man went on to ask whether the woman was a citizen or an American citizen, then pressed the family for their apartment number and lease. Houston police say Mohammed is a relative of someone in the car that was struck. The woman's son described his mother as really nervous during the encounter, adding that the family handed over a lot of personal information before realizing something was wrong.
Family Says They No Longer Feel Safe
“She doesn't feel safe, I don't feel safe,” the woman's son said, describing the aftermath of the confrontation, per the same report. The family ultimately reported the incident to Houston police, who charged Mohammed with impersonation.
The demand for lease and residency paperwork is precisely the kind of red flag advocates point to when warning residents about impersonation scams. The Immigrant Legal Resource Center's guide discusses workplace enforcement and says ICE must obtain a judge's warrant for a worksite search in the stated context. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services page discusses common scams and official USCIS communication channels.
What Mohammed Could Face Under Texas Law
In Texas, impersonating a public servant is classified as a third-degree felony under Texas Penal Code § 37.11, according to the L&L Law Group, carrying a statutory penalty of two to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000 upon conviction. A discussion by Barnett Howard & Williams PLLC addresses the statute's impersonation and intent requirements.
Beyond the state charge, falsely pretending to be an officer or employee of the United States, such as an ICE agent, is also a federal felony under 18 U.S.C. § 912, according to the U.S. Department of Justice, punishable by up to three years in prison and statutory fines. It remains an open question whether federal prosecutors will pursue a parallel charge against Mohammed in addition to the state case.
Part of a Wider Pattern of Fake Agents
The Houston case is not an isolated one. In another case, KHOU 11 Houston reported that 72-year-old Royal Eugene Lovejoy was accused of claiming to be a federal agent and showing officers a novelty badge.
Mohammed's bond was set at $20,000. It is not yet known whether Houston police have received reports of similar conduct by Mohammed prior to this incident.
