Police say FBI agent sexually assaulted 2 women after promise of free tattoos, modeling

GAITHERSBURG, Md. (AP) — An FBI agent charged in Maryland with sexually assaulting two women contacted his alleged victims through social media with a promise to give them free tattoos and modeling work, police said Tuesday as they encouraged other potential victims to come forward.

Neither woman knew that their alleged assailant, Eduardo Valdivia, was an FBI agent, Montgomery County Assistant Police Chief Nicholas Augustine said during a news conference.

Valdivia used aliases, including Lalo Brown, as he contacted the women through an Instagram account for a tattoo parlor in Gaithersburg, Maryland, according to police.

Valdivia sexually assaulted the women — both of whom are in their 20s — during photo shoots at a tattoo studio and at a hotel, police said.

Valdivia presented the women modeling contracts and threatened to take legal action if they didn’t return to model for him, Augustine said. Police detectives suspect that Valdivia may have sexually assaulted other women under similar circumstances, according to the assistant chief.

“I would like to thank the victims that did come forward. They have now stopped this contact going on in our community and being brave to come forward to notify the police about what was going on, which most likely saved other people from being victimized,” Augustine said.

Valdivia has been suspended by the FBI pending the conclusion of the police investigation. “The FBI takes allegations of criminal violations and misconduct very seriously,” an FBI spokesperson said in a statement Monday. “Because this is an ongoing investigation, the FBI cannot comment further.”

Valdivia, 40, of Gaithersburg, previously was charged and acquitted in 2022 of attempted second-degree murder and other charges stemming from an off-duty shooting aboard a moving Metro train near Washington, D.C.

Online court records show Valdivia now faces felony and misdemeanor charges, including two counts of second-degree rape. The alleged offenses date to May 2024 and September 2024.

Defense attorney Robert Bonsib, who represented Valdivia in the shooting case, confirmed that his client was arrested Monday on sexual assault charges.

“We don’t accept at first blush any of the allegations until all of the evidence is in,” Bonsib said Monday.

Police began investigating in October. The women were initially reluctant to come forward because they felt “held back” by language in contracts they signed to do modeling work, Augustine said.

“We don’t know how long the business had been open, but he has been doing tattoos at least since February,” Augustine said.

Valdivia was ordered held in custody after his initial court appearance Monday, Bonsib said. A bond hearing was scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.

Bonsib has said Valdivia joined the FBI in 2011 and was promoted to supervisory special agent at the FBI headquarters in 2019.

On Dec. 15, 2020, a confrontation between Valdivia and an unarmed passenger swiftly escalated from a testy exchange of words to a shooting on a train approaching the Medical Center station in Bethesda, Maryland.

Valdivia shot and wounded the man from a distance of roughly 2 to 3 feet (0.6 to 0.9 meters) after repeatedly telling the man to back up, county prosecutor Robert Hill said in court. The wounded man had part or all of his spleen, colon and pancreas removed during surgery after the shooting, Hill said.

Bonsib has said Valdivia acted in self-defense as the man approached him at the rear of a train car.

“The law does not require that you wait to be struck before you take action. Had this resulted in a hands-on fight and a struggle for Agent Valdivia’s gun, only God knows what could have happened,” Bonsib said after Valdivia was charged.

Eduardo Valdivia, an FBI special agent who is accused of sexually assaulting two women, is pictured in a mugshot provided by the Montgomery County Department of Police, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

Montgomery County Department of Police Assistant Chief Nicholas Augustine speaks during a press conference about the arrest of FBI special agent Eduardo Valdivia, who is accused of sexually assaulting two women, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Gaithersburg, Md. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

TORONTO (AP) — Some Canadian officials on Tuesday blasted President-elect Donald's Trump's threat to impose sweeping tariffs, as the leader of the country's most populous province called Trump's comparison of Canada to Mexico “the most insulting thing I’ve ever heard.”

Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on products from Canada, Mexico and China as soon as he takes office in January as part of efforts to crack down on illegal immigration and drugs. He said he would impose a 25% tax on all products entering the U.S. from Canada and Mexico as one of his first executive orders.

“To compare us to Mexico is the most insulting thing I’ve ever heard from our friends and closest allies, the United States of America," Ontario Premier Doug Ford said. “I found his comments unfair. I found them insulting. It’s like a family member stabbing you right in the heart."

Ford said Canada will have no choice but to retaliate.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will convene an emergency meeting with provincial leaders on Wednesday. The Canadian dollar weakened sharply in foreign exchange markets.

Trudeau said he spoke with Trump after his threat of tariffs. “We talked about the intense and effective connections between our countries that flow back and forth. We talked about some of the challenges that we can work on together. It was a good call,” Trudeau said.

Trump made the threat Monday while railing against an influx of illegal migrants, even though apprehensions at the southern U.S. border have been near four-year lows.

Apprehension numbers at the Canadian border pale in comparison.

“We shouldn’t confuse the Mexican border with the Canadian border,” Canadian Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne said.

The U.S. Border Patrol made 56,530 arrests at the Mexican border in October — and 23,721 arrests at the Canadian one between October 2023 and September 2024.

"It’s the equivalent to a significant weekend at the Mexico border,” Canadian Immigration Minister Marc Miller said, adding that Canada is considering a number of border measures including additional resources.

Canada is one of the most trade-dependent countries in the world, and 77% of Canada’s exports go to the U.S. Nearly $3.6 billion Canadian (US$2.7 billion) worth of goods and services cross the border each day. About 60% of U.S. crude oil imports are from Canada, and 85% of U.S. electricity imports are from Canada. Canada is also the largest foreign supplier of steel, aluminum and uranium to the U.S. and has 34 critical minerals and metals that the Pentagon is investing in for national security.

When Trump imposed higher tariffs during his first term, countries responded with retaliatory tariffs. Canada announced billions of new duties in 2018 against the U.S. in response to new taxes on Canadian steel and aluminum.

Many of the U.S. products were chosen for their political rather than economic impact. For example, Canada imports just $3 million worth of yogurt from the U.S. annually and most comes from one plant in Wisconsin, the home state of then-Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan. That product was hit with a 10% duty.

Now, again, Canadians are particularly worried about auto tariffs because the industry is critical to the economy. The North American auto industry is highly integrated, and parts made in Canada often go to cars manufactured in the U.S. and sold back to Canadians.

“To try and undo it with a tariff would be like trying to separate the yolks from the whites in a omelet. You cannot,” said Flavio Volpe, president of Canada's Automotive Parts Manufacturers Association. “You cannot hurt Canadian hurt automotive without immediately hurting American automotive."

The tariffs would also throw into doubt the reliability of the 2020 trade deal brokered in large part by Trump with Canada and Mexico that replaced NAFTA. It is up for review in 2026.

FILE - Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, left, responds to a question as Ontario Premier Doug Ford looks on following an announcement of plans to turn Nokia's Ottawa facility into a research and development technology center in Ottawa, Ontario, on Monday, Oct. 17, 2022. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press via AP, File)tariff