Brazilian nationals casting ballots in their country’s presidential election at Miami Dade College’s Kendall Campus on Sunday afternoon encountered a man investigators say was dressed to look like an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent. Danilo Alves Silva, 46, was arrested over the weekend after the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office said he intimidated voters at the poll site.
According to the arrest report cited by ABC News, Silva moved between the polling locations in a blue “ICE raid jacket,” a blue ICE hat, sunglasses, blue jeans, and tactical-style boots, with a mask covering his face. Deputies and detectives already assigned to the campus watched him interact with people the report described as “in fear.”
The report said those voters believed a federal immigration officer had shown up at their election. “The people were gathered and were clearly in fear that, as they portrayed it, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement ICE agent was interfering with their election, possibly deporting individuals,” the arrest report said. Officers moved in after a person holding a camera challenged Silva about the outfit, and the two started arguing.
He allegedly tried to bribe the officers
Once deputies questioned him, Silva allegedly said he was not a federal agent and could not show identification. He told investigators he had come to the campus as a Brazilian voter, cast his own ballot, and only afterward changed into an ICE costume he allegedly bought on Amazon, “so that I can come here to see people’s reactions,” the arrest report said.
He also told officers there is no law against walking around a voting site dressed as ICE, according to the report. The account in the report treats that claim as his explanation for why he stayed on the campus in the outfit after voting.
The exchange did not end with the arrest. After Silva was placed in a Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office car, he allegedly told a detective, “He will regret making this decision.” On the drive that followed, he allegedly said, “I will get you paid if you let me go,” the arrest report said. Those remarks are tied to two of the counts later filed against him.
On Monday, Silva was charged with prohibited intimidation or suppression of voters, conspiracy to commit bribery, threatening a public servant to influence their performance, and unlawful use of a police badge or insignia. He has not entered a plea and remains held on bond. Attorney information was not immediately available.
The arrest landed less than a month before the midterm elections, a period when concern about voter intimidation at poll sites has been rising. Voters heading into the midterms are weighing ICE’s standing, as a new poll finds ICE is viewed more favorably than socialism, though both are underwater with voters. Alina Garcia, Miami-Dade County’s supervisor of elections, told reporters Monday that ICE and other law enforcement agents will not be present inside any election polling site in the county.
Garcia urged residents to keep voting in this year’s election during early voting, by mail ballot, or on Election Day. Voting in Florida has carried legal risk for some residents, as one Florida man is facing a year in jail for allegedly voting illegally.
“Do not let fear, rumors or misinformation keep you from participating in your democracy,” she said. Her comments addressed county polling places for the U.S. election, separate from the Brazilian vote held on the Kendall Campus.
Published: Oct 7, 2026 06:30 am