Hundreds protest as Border Patrol and ICE arrest over 200 migrants in North Carolina

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA: Hundreds of Queen City residents flooded the streets to protest migrants being arrested by US Border Patrol as part of “Operation Charlotte’s Web."

Sources told NewsNation that federal agents blitzed North Carolina’s biggest city and scooped up more than two hundred people over the weekend. 

Greg Bovino, the commander-at-large for US Customs and Border Protection’s crackdown, promised on Sunday that his agents would “hit Charlotte like a storm.” 

Migrants with criminal records, gang ties

According to the Department of Homeland Security, among those snatched up were 44 migrants with rap sheets that included “aggravated assault, assault with a dangerous weapon, assault on a police officer, battery, driving under the influence, and hit-and-run.”

DHS also said two known gang members were arrested during the sweep.

A spokesperson declared, “There is absolutely no excuse to continue allowing criminal illegal aliens to terrorize our American communities.” They called those arrested “violent assailants, gang members, and repeat offenders who have zero regard for the rule of law in our country. They are here illegally, should never have been here in the first place.”

Residents fume after reports of agents near churches, stores

Some Charlotte residents were fuming after reports circulated of encounters with immigration agents popping up near churches, apartment complexes, and convenience stores. Some said US citizens were also being stopped in the chaos.

North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein said in a Sunday video statement, “We’ve seen masked, heavily armed agents in paramilitary garb driving unmarked cars, targeting American citizens based on their skin color, racially profiling and picking up random people in parking lots and off of our sidewalks.”

He added, “This is not making us safer. It’s stoking fear and dividing our community.”

Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles echoed that sentiment on Monday, saying she is “deeply concerned with many of the videos I’ve seen,” and urging participating agencies to stay anchored to the city’s values of respect.

“We are actively working with our partners to determine what more we can do to support our community while working within complicated legal boundaries,” she added.

DHS doubles down

DHS told ABC News on Monday that those arrested “have all broken the immigration laws of our country.”

A spokesperson also laid out the criminal histories associated with the Charlotte arrests, which included “known gang membership, aggravated assault, possession of a dangerous weapon, felony larceny, simple assault, hit and run, possession of stolen goods, shoplifting, DUI, DWI, and illegal re-entry after prior deportation, a felony.”

“We will not stop enforcing the laws of our nation until every criminal illegal alien is arrested and removed from our country," they added.

Bovino later revealed that 81 people were arrested within the first five hours after “Operation Charlotte’s Web” launched on Saturday.

Charlotte is the latest city on the Trump administration’s countrywide immigration enforcement tour, following similar sweeps in Los Angeles and Chicago. Notably, these are all sanctuary cities with Democratic mayors.