CINCINNATI — A suspended Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent based in Cincinnati is facing a new federal charge in connection with an alleged domestic violence incident from earlier this month.
According to the indictment filed on Dec. 17 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, 47-year-old Samuel Saxon is accused of lying to a federal law enforcement officer.
The federal charge stems from a Dec. 5 incident, where Saxon is accused of putting a woman in a chokehold, "causing visible injuries on her neck," in the hallway of their Corryville apartment complex, according to an affidavit.
Watch: What we know about accusations that the agent repeatedly lied to officials
Saxon was suspended from his role as Assistant Special Agent in Charge of ICE for the Cincinnati region. He now faces state charges in connection with the incident, including felonious assault, strangulation and domestic violence.
At Saxon's Dec. 12 arraignment, where he pleaded not guilty to the state charges, an officer told the judge they responded to a reported strangulation at the complex on Dec. 5. However, the woman who was allegedly choked didn't cooperate with police.
According to the prosecutor's office, an independent witness 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.
This new charge, according to court documents, is linked to an interview conducted by Cincinnati police and a special agent with the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General with Saxon an hour after his arrest on Dec. 6.
A federal criminal complaint alleges Saxon "repeatedly lied" to the federal agent during the interview about "whether he had interacted with the victim in person around the time the neighbor called 911, or at any time that day."
Saxon told law enforcement during the interview, according to the complaint, that he had only communicated with the victim over the phone that day and that, "if neighbors heard yelling, that must have been the victim screaming at him over the phone."
The complaint goes on to detail videos submitted to law enforcement by a witness, who said it was recorded shortly after Saxon was seen taking the victim inside their apartment.
"(The videos) appear to capture the sound of an aggressive argument between Saxon and the victim," the complaint stated. "Although not all of their words can be made out, Saxon can be heard yelling, among other things, 'Get up,' 'B----,' and 'F--- you! F--- you!'"
Other sounds consistent with a physical altercation can be heard in the recordings, according to the complaint.
We previously reached out to Saxon for comment, but he declined. We reached out to Saxon's attorney on Friday for comment regarding the latest federal charge. We are still waiting to hear back.
Saxon faces up to five years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 if convicted of the federal charge. He's potentially facing years more in prison if convicted of all the state charges.
