Former Guilford County Officer Charged in 20 Forged ICE Hold Orders
Former Guilford County Sheriff's Office detention officer Michael Diehl, 40, was arrested and charged with 20 counts of felony common law forgery tied to allegedly forged court orders for immigration holds. The Sheriff's Office announced the charges on September 11, 2026. The Guardian
Sheriff Danny H. Rogers said the case began after the Guilford County magistrate's office alerted the Sheriff's Office to a potentially forged court document submitted by Diehl. Magistrates are judicial officers who review arrests. The notice arrived at about 8:00 a.m. on Friday, September 11, 2026.
The first document was form AOC-CR-662, titled "Order After Receipt of ICE Detainer and Administrative Warrant," linked to an ICE detainer for inmate Claudio Nepornuceno. An ICE detainer is a federal request to hold someone suspected of violating immigration law. Review found the form carried the allegedly forged signature of a different magistrate who did not process Nepornuceno's initial arrest. Nepornuceno was not presented before a magistrate with the ICE detainer. A form with the allegedly forged signature was submitted instead.
Investigators then found 19 more AOC-CR-662 forms for 19 other inmates with allegedly forged magistrate signatures. That brought the total to 20. In each of the 20 cases, ICE had issued a detainer based on evidence the inmate was in violation of U.S. immigration law.
Diehl was fired during the criminal investigation, on a Friday as investigators examined the alleged forgeries. WXII He received a $5,000 secured bond. He has been released from custody.
The investigation remains ongoing. Additional charges may follow.
Under North Carolina law, an AOC-CR-662 lets a jail hold an inmate up to 48 hours past the otherwise-required release time so ICE can take custody. The form requires magistrate review. Without that review, the extended hold lacks the judicial approval the process requires. Like a permission slip, the federal request alone is not enough.
The broader context here is procedural control. ICE detainers signal a federal request based on alleged immigration violations, but they do not by themselves extend detention in this system. The magistrate order is the legal tool that does that. Allegations that it was bypassed raise questions about the custody status of the 20 inmates, the integrity of detention records, and the checks for routing paperwork through judicial officers.
Looking at what this means for Guilford County, the immediate issues are audit and accountability. Investigators will need to establish how the 20 forms were prepared, submitted and filed, whether other releases or holds were affected, and whether supervisors caught the lack of in-person presentment. The case also shows the operational risk when jail staff handle high-volume ICE paperwork under time pressure, and how much turns on one signature.
