(The Center Square) – Federal immigration law enforcement enhancement, according to elected leaders in Charlotte and Raleigh, has concluded for now in North Carolina.
Unconfirmed by federal agencies publicly, Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden on Thursday said in a release that federal officials confirmed to him Operation Charlotte’s Web has ended. No operations with U.S. Customs and Border Patrol were to happen during the day or evening.
Wednesday evening, Raleigh Mayor Janet Cowell wrote on social media, “border patrol enforcement appears to have been suspended” in the city.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, in a release Wednesday, said more than 250 people illegally in America and the Charlotte area had been arrested since Saturday’s start of the operation. It said, “Among those arrested are numerous criminal illegal aliens with extensive immigration and criminal histories, including domestic violence, assault, breaking and entering, larceny, and driving while intoxicated.”
Published reports say the number arrested could be higher.
Homeland Security hasn’t mentioned a number of those arrested in Raleigh or the surrounding Triangle area.
Gregory Bovino, chief patrol agent of the El Centro Sector of U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, is expected to lead a new operation in New Orleans that could begin as early as this weekend and go for two months. An estimated 250 agents are expected to participate.
He wrote on social media Thursday morning, “The mission continues unabated despite a 1,000% increase in violence.”
Though the enhanced level will dissipate, regular operations of federal lawmen will continue. McFadden said deputies would release suspects in their custody to ICE within the two-day period required by state law.
“We will continue to build relationships, mend bridges, and listen to the voices of everyone in our community,” McFadden said. “As we move forward, I want the city of Charlotte to know that I will keep fighting for clarity, accountability, and trust. I will continue to protect this city and every single one of its citizens.”
HISTORIC DECLINE IN WORKING-AGE IMMIGRANTS IN JUST SIX MONTHS
Second-term Republican President Donald Trump has made enforcement of immigration law and border security one of the top priorities of his second administration. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, former governor of South Dakota, after nearly a decade in the U.S. House of Representatives, has directed staff to multiple immigration enforcement operations in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, Portland, and the twin cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul.
Similar to Americans using passports or other documentation to visit foreign countries, so too does the law also requires those coming into the United States to do so legally. The vast majority follow these laws.