Charlotte Border Patrol Operation Shuts Down Businesses Amid Fears

(CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA, USA) A large immigration enforcement operation by Border Patrol has shut down shops, stirred fear in Latino neighborhoods, and sparked political outrage across Charlotte after more than 130 people were arrested in just two days under a new initiative called “Charlotte’s Web.”

The operation, run by the Department of Homeland Security, began on Saturday, November 15, 2025, and marks the first time Border Patrol has taken the lead on local arrests in a major city without on-the-ground coordination with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, in the same locations. Federal officials say the focus is on people with criminal records and past immigration violations. Community members say it feels like a city under siege.

How the operation unfolded

Agents set up stops across Charlotte, from parking lots and side streets to busy commercial corridors like Milton Road and South Boulevard. Witnesses reported Border Patrol vehicles near churches, grocery stores, and restaurants, with officers stopping people who appeared to be Latino or immigrants and questioning them in public.

Videos shared on social media show agents breaking a truck window during a stop and chasing people near local businesses as bystanders shout in shock.

Visible community impacts

One of the most visible effects of Charlotte’s Web is a wave of temporary business closures.

• Manolo’s Bakery, a well-known shop on Central Avenue that has served the east side for nearly thirty years, shut its doors after owner Manolo Banco saw agents stopping people just steps from the entrance.
• He said officers pushed people to the ground without warning, leaving customers terrified and nearby businesses empty.
• Banco explained that some customers were stopped right outside and taken away, and he did not want families with children to face armed officers while buying bread or birthday cakes.
• He said he will reopen only when he believes customers can safely walk to his counter without the risk of arrest outside his windows.

“In 28 years, I have never driven down this street and seen every store around me closed from fear,” Banco said.

Other small businesses followed the same path, posting handwritten signs that they were closed for safety reasons. Some workers stayed home after hearing about arrests near bus stops and shopping centers. Parents debated whether to send their children to school or keep them inside until the immigration enforcement operation ends. Taxi and delivery drivers also reported changing routes to avoid known Border Patrol checkpoints.

Arrest totals and federal rationale

According to officials, the first two days of Charlotte’s Web led to more than 130 arrests, including:

Homeland Security said the operation is “targeted and lawful” and argued that removing people with past convictions will make communities safer. In a brief statement, a spokesperson said officers “are working within federal authority and focusing on public safety risks.”

Political and civil-rights reaction

Civil rights groups and local leaders sharply dispute the federal portrayal.

• The governor of North Carolina condemned what he called “paramilitary tactics”, warning that aggressive stops outside churches and stores risk racial profiling and could break trust between police and immigrant neighborhoods.
• State lawmakers from both parties asked for more details about how targets are chosen and whether Border Patrol is stopping people based mainly on appearance or language.
• Local advocacy group Action NC called on residents to pack upcoming City Council meetings and demand that local police not assist in federal operations like Charlotte’s Web.

While Charlotte police say they are not partners in the arrests, many residents are not sure who is who when they see uniforms and marked vehicles. Organizers are asking the city to provide clear public information about local policy and to offer legal support hotlines in Spanish and other languages.

Community response: protests, schools, and fear

Students in Charlotte organized walkouts at several schools, carrying signs such as “Families belong together” and “We are not afraid” as they marched toward city buildings. Some teachers joined them, saying that children arrived at class in tears after watching parents or relatives questioned by agents near their homes.

One high school junior said:

“My mom told me not to go anywhere alone. I’m a U.S. citizen, but they look at my skin and my accent and I worry they’ll still stop me.”

Lawyers in the city report a spike in calls from families trying to track relatives who were detained during the operation. Some callers were U.S. citizens who were present when agents stormed a parking lot or apartment complex and wanted to know what rights they have if officers return. Legal groups are sharing information on:

• How to ask if a person is free to leave
• How to request a lawyer

Many callers, however, are afraid to give their names.

Broader policy context

This Charlotte campaign follows earlier federal enforcement surges in cities such as Chicago, Los Angeles, Portland, and Washington, D.C., which are tied to President Trump’s broader mass deportation agenda. According to analysis by VisaVerge.com, the shift toward high-visibility raids in large urban areas is meant both to increase total removals and to send a message of toughness to voters who support stricter border rules.

Critics say the strategy instead spreads fear among mixed-status families where some members are U.S. citizens and others hold temporary or no status.

Legal authority and critics’ concerns

The federal government maintains that Border Patrol has authority to act inside the country, not only at the physical border. The agency’s general guidance, published on the U.S. Customs and Border Protection website, explains that agents can question people about their status and conduct certain stops inside what is known as the “reasonable distance” zone from any U.S. boundary.

For critics, the sight of green-uniformed officers arresting people far from any international crossing shows how wide that zone has become in practice.

Personal accounts and ongoing uncertainty

For people on the ground, policy debate in Washington feels very far away.

• Outside Manolo’s Bakery, a regular customer described watching an early-morning stop: “They pulled a man from his car, put him on the ground, and he kept asking what he did.”
• She said agents “never answered him in Spanish, just shouted orders in English.” The woman, a permanent resident from Honduras, now carries her green card everywhere but worries officers will not give her time to show it.

As the immigration enforcement operation continues, Charlotte’s leaders face pressure from both sides.

• Business owners who closed during early raids are losing income and worry about long-term damage if customers stay away.
• Residents who support stricter law enforcement say the presence of Border Patrol is overdue, arguing that people with serious criminal records should be removed quickly and that federal law must be applied in every city.

For now, there is no clear end date for Charlotte’s Web, and DHS has not said whether similar stand-alone Border Patrol operations will roll out in other North Carolina cities. In Charlotte, many immigrants say they are living day to day, weighing each trip outside the home as a possible risk.

On Central Avenue, the lights are off at Manolo’s Bakery, and Banco says he will keep his doors closed until, in his words, “the street belongs to neighbors again, not just agents and fear.”