NC immigration officer accused of blackmail

RALEIGH -- An immigration services officer in North Carolina is free on bond after being accused of threatening to have a Salvadoran woman deported unless she spent the night with him. The News & Observer of Raleigh reported that 48-year-old Bedri Kulla was arrested Wednesday on a blackmail charge. A federal judge in Greensboro released him on $1,000 bail. Kulla works at the Citizenship and Immigration Services office in Durham, which handles applications and petitions for citizenship, work visas and other immigration matters. In April, 23-year-old Xiomara Blanco accused Kulla of harassing her after they met through a personals section on a Web site. A federal affidavit says Kulla demanded that Blanco date him and spend the night with him. Kulla said Thursday that "the truth will come out," without elaborating. (Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)