CHARLOTTE, N.C. (NewsNation) — Just days into a federal immigration enforcement operation in North Carolina, Border Patrol agents are already running into opposition from elected officials and protesters alike.
Agents found the tires of their government vehicles slashed Tuesday in Charlotte, where Department of Homeland Security officials say agents have arrested more than 200 people since Saturday. Despite only arriving in North Carolina’s largest city late last week, agents are having their locations tracked by community groups and activists who characterize themselves as being anti-ICE.
On Monday, a woman was arrested after Border Patrol officials said she rammed their vehicles with her vehicle and then left the scene. A high-speed chase led to her capture. The woman told NewsNation that she belonged to an activist group but declined to specifically identify the group. She has denied targeting agents but could now be facing criminal charges of assaulting a federal agent, officials told NewsNation.
The targeting of federal agents comes as DHS officials confirmed to NewsNation the immigration enforcement operation will extend to Raleigh, the state’s capital. Meanwhile, in Charlotte, federal agents have made arrests at local grocery stores, Hope Depot locations and parking lots. DHS officials say they are prioritizing what the Trump administration considers “the worst of the worst” criminal migrants.
That includes 44 immigrants who officials say have been charged with or convicted of violent crimes such as assault —including on a police officer — and hit-and-run. DHS officials also said that they have taken two known gang members into custody since the operation in Charlotte began over the weekend.
But those who oppose the effort, including North Carolina Democratic Gov. Josh Stein, insist that the operation is extending well beyond dangerous criminals. Stein and other Democrats say that U.S. citizens are being detained and arrested by masked agents in unmarked vehicles. Others say that immigrant workers are being arrested by federal agents and have criticized the federal presence for going well beyond what DHS officials say is the purpose of the operation.
Gregory Bovino, the Border Patrol commander who is overseeing the Charlotte operation as he did in Chicago and Los Angeles, considers the Charlotte operation an “all-threats mission.” DHS data obtained by NewsNation shows that there are more than 161,000 migrants who have previously been ordered to leave the country living in the greater Charlotte area.
Additionally, the agency has identified more than 6,300 migrants with prior criminal convictions, along with others whom Bovino says have broken the nation’s immigration laws.
But those who have come out in opposition to the multiagency federal operation say that those being arrested by agents go well beyond who DHS officials say they are specifically going after.
“If this were (agents) coming in and they had a list of people they were specifically targeting, that they were going after, and that’s all they were doing, that would be one thing,” Terry Brown, the North Carolina State House Democratic whip, said. “But we have seen is they are at shopping centers, Home Depot, they are at restaurants, in neighborhoods. And they are asking people, ‘Do you have your papers? Do you speak English? Are you here illegally?’ and I think that is a bridge too far.”
Greg Asciutto, executive director of nonprofit CharlotteEAST, agrees and told NewsNation the enforcement is targeting more than just the “worst of the worst.”
“Everybody wants criminals, specifically that are committing those heinous acts, to be off the streets and out of our community and not perpetrating crimes,” he said. “But again, the reality of what we’ve actually seen with who has been targeted is much different.”
However, Bovino said that those opposing his agents’ presence are in the minority. He said that 95% of people in Charlotte are in favor of the operation. Bovino said his agents found similar support in Chicago and other locations where the Border Patrol has, and will be, deployed.
“There’s always a vocal minority — probably the same individuals in other places who fall victim to that heated rhetoric by politicians and/or community leaders,” Bovino told NewsNation, accusing Democratic lawmakers of vilifying federal law enforcement for taking criminals off of local streets.
He added, “The negativity in this type of operation, that’s just part of it.”
NewsNation’s Mills Hayes contributed reporting to this story.