Additional Coverage:
- Shocking footage shows masked ICE agents smash windows and assault US citizen they already accosted (themirror.com)
Charlotte, NC – A recent incident in Charlotte has sparked outrage after a video surfaced showing masked ICE agents smashing the windows of a U.S. citizen’s truck and forcibly detaining him. Willy Aceituno, a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Honduras, was targeted outside a local diner.
The video captures agents surrounding Aceituno’s truck, breaking the windows, and dragging him to the ground. Throughout the ordeal, Aceituno can be heard repeatedly stating, “I am a citizen,” pleas that were reportedly ignored by agents. A bystander also questioned the detention, noting that Aceituno had already identified himself.
Aceituno informed the Associated Press that he was taken into a Border Patrol vehicle and only released after presenting his citizenship documents. This incident was not isolated, as Aceituno reported being stopped twice by Border Patrol on the same day, with agents also smashing a window on his other vehicle.
This disturbing event coincides with a surge of federal agents arriving in Charlotte over the weekend for immigration arrests, a move that has been met with protest from the city’s mayor and other local officials.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson issued a statement defending the operations, asserting, “We are surging DHS law enforcement to Charlotte to ensure Americans are safe and public safety threats are removed.” The statement further criticized “sanctuary politicians,” claiming, “There have been too many victims of criminal illegal aliens and President [Donald] Trump and Secretary [Kristi] Noem will step up to protect Americans when sanctuary politicians won’t.”
In response, North Carolina’s Democratic Governor, Josh Stein, released his own statement on Friday, emphasizing, “We should all focus on arresting violent criminals and drug traffickers. Unfortunately, that’s not always what we’ve seen with ICE and Border Patrol Agents in Chicago and elsewhere in the country.”
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department has clarified that they are not authorized to assist in ICE arrests. This comes after an incident last week in Orange County, California, where a police officer was accused of aiding an ICE raid after appearing to intervene in a viral video. The officer later stated he approached after seeing an plainclothes ICE agent aiming a gun at a woman, and only after the agent provided credentials.