Border Patrol arrests over 130 in 2 days in Charlotte, Homeland Security says
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Border Patrol in Charlotte
U.S. Border Patrol began making rounds in Charlotte on Saturday morning.
This follows recent Border Patrol activity in Chicago that made headlines, with some reports alleging agents violated people’s rights.
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The U.S. Border Patrol arrested over 130 people on Saturday and Sunday after beginning an operation in Charlotte in which masked agents in paramilitary gear approach people in public places, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
“Criminal records of those arrested include 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,” according to a statement from DHS.
The agencies have not released most of their names or paperwork, so that claim could not be verified. DHS released the names and photos of 11 people the agency said were arrested over the weekend in a press release Monday.
DHS alleged two men were gang members. Manuel Vasquez-Gavarrete was accused of being a member of the 18th Street Gang and Humberto Pozada-Rodriguez, a member of MS-13, the statement said.
Border Patrol has not said where people arrested are being held.
Maria Somers, who has headed the Charlotte office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, on Monday declined an interview request, a spokesperson said.
Border Patrol arrived in Charlotte on Saturday morning and arrested people at restaurants, grocery stores, Home Depot parking lots and an east Charlotte church. Its operation, called “Charlotte’s Web” — taken from the children’s novel by E.B. White — has targeted the city’s immigrant communities in north, east, and south Charlotte.
Protesters have faced off with federal agents, yelling at them and filming them throughout the weekend, including at the Charlotte Department of Homeland Security office Sunday night.
Border Patrol agents continued their operations Monday and Tuesday.
“We will not stop enforcing the laws of our nation until every criminal illegal alien is arrested and removed from our country,” the statement said.
![Shana Blake sits in a cage in a small protest outside Manolo’s Bakery in east Charlotte on Monday, Nov. 17, 2025. The bakery closed for the first time in 28 years after Border Patrol arrests in Charlotte. A handful of protesters gathered outside the bakery to protest ICE activity in the neighborhood. “Even if [the bakery’s] not open, it’s such a faith effort to have people show up and support,” Blake said.](https://www.charlotteobserver.com/public/latest-news/s6y3q2/picture312955187/alternates/FREE_1140/IMG_9870.jpg "IMG_9870.jpg")
This story was originally published November 17, 2025 at 11:44 AM with the headline "Border Patrol arrests over 130 in 2 days in Charlotte, Homeland Security says."
