Guilford County, NC detention officer forged magistrates' signatures on 20 ICE detainer forms, unlawfully holding inmates

On September 11, 2026, the Guilford County Sheriff's Office disclosed that veteran detention officer Michael Shaun Diehl Jr., 40, had forged the signatures of Guilford County magistrates on 20 AOC-CR-662 forms — the state court order that authorizes holding an inmate in jail up to 48 hours beyond their scheduled release so U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement can take custody. The case surfaced when the Guilford County Magistrate's Office flagged a forged signature on a form submitted for one inmate, who investigators found had never actually been brought before a magistrate as state law requires. A review of jail booking records then identified 19 more AOC-CR-662 forms, covering 19 additional inmates, that also carried forged magistrates' signatures.

Under North Carolina law — strengthened by legislation that took effect October 1, 2025 requiring closer county cooperation with ICE — an inmate subject to an ICE detainer and administrative warrant must be presented to a magistrate, who alone can authorize the extended hold. That judicial step is what the forged forms bypassed: all 20 inmates were held in the Guilford County jail on paperwork that represented a magistrate's authorization no magistrate had actually given. The Sheriff's Office said it found no evidence Diehl fabricated the underlying ICE detainers themselves, only the state court order needed to keep holding the inmates on them.

Sheriff Danny Rogers' office fired Diehl, an employee since 2008, and he was arrested and charged with 20 counts of common-law forgery. He was released on a $5,000 secured bond and is scheduled to appear in Guilford District Court on November 10, 2026. The Sheriff's Office said its Major Crimes Investigative Unit is continuing to investigate, including whether anyone else knew the forms were being submitted without the required magistrate appearances, and that additional charges may follow.