A church employee in Houston, Texas, has been arrested for allegedly impersonating an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent to extort money from a woman who gave him a massage. Donald Doolittle, 58, the safety director at Gateway Community Church in Webster, faces a charge of impersonating a public servant.
According to police, Doolittle booked a massage with a woman at an office building in northwest Houston. After the massage, he attempted to pay with a credit card, but the woman said she only accepted cash or Zelle payments. Doolittle then produced an ID card labelled 'ICE', identified himself as an agent, and demanded to see her identification. The woman showed her temporary visa, but Doolittle allegedly demanded $500 via Zelle, threatening to take her away and ensure she never saw her family again.
The victim complied and sent the money. Doolittle later told her she would not hear from other ICE agents because he had marked her case for non-prosecution, and asked her to delete their text messages. The extortion came to light when the victim encountered police officers at a lunch the next day and recounted her story.
When interviewed, Doolittle denied getting a massage or visiting the victim's business, but police said surveillance footage proved otherwise. This incident follows warnings from ICE's cyber crimes unit about criminals impersonating agents to demand money or install ransomware. The Federal Trade Commission also warns of scammers posing as ICE to threaten deportation unless fees are paid.
