US immigration sweep leads to 80 arrests in Charlotte

A large-scale operation by US immigration agents in Charlotte, North Carolina, resulted in dozens of detentions for immigration violations.

Federal officers arrested at least 81 people in Charlotte on November 16 following the five-hour operation that was launched on November 15 in an effort to broaden the administration’s deportation drive, Caliber.Az reports, citing Reuters.

Gregory Bovino, the head of immigration operations in Los Angeles and Chicago, wrote on his X account that many of those detained had a significant criminal and immigration history, as he spent the week in Charlotte.

Neither the Border Patrol nor Immigration and Customs Enforcement commented on the incident, and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) also issued no formal statement.

Mass deportations and the rigid enforcement of immigration laws have become central pillars of US President Donald Trump’s domestic agenda.

Since Trump, a Republican, took office in January, federal immigration agents have conducted raids not only in Democratic-led cities but also in conservative rural communities.

These operations have triggered major protests in affected areas, with residents at times confronting agents as they move to detain individuals suspected of being in the country illegally.

Advocacy groups and immigration rights organisations, meanwhile, accuse the administration of unlawfully sweeping up numerous law-abiding citizens during the raids.

DHS officials said on November 15, that the Charlotte raids were triggered by local authorities’ refusal to comply with nearly 1,400 detainer requests, which call for suspects to be held for up to 48 hours beyond their scheduled release.

By Jeyhun Aghazada