MECKLENBURG COUNTY, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — The recent ICE operation that led to the arrest of 24 undocumented immigrants is highlighting the strained relationship between U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office.
At the center of the controversy is Sheriff Garry McFadden, who claims ICE is not only sidestepping his office but also misrepresenting the role of the MCSO in these arrests.
According to ICE, six of the 24 individuals detained had active “detainers,” requests to hold them in custody beyond a judge’s order.
But Sheriff McFadden, citing his duty to uphold the law, refutes this claim, saying that ICE is misleading the public by blaming MCSO for not taking action that would be illegal.
“My duty is to uphold the law and the Constitution, not to act outside of my legal authority at the request of a federal agency that refuses to follow proper procedures,” McFadden said.
Despite his repeated attempts to communicate with ICE about these arrests, McFadden claims he has been met with a wall of silence. The sheriff went so far, on Tuesday, as to outline the timeline of his office’s communication efforts with ICE.
On March 18, McFadden says he emailed the Atlantic Field Chief of Staff of ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), requesting clarification on the agency’s stance regarding House Bill 10 (HB-10). This bill allows local law enforcement to hold undocumented immigrants for an additional 48 hours for ICE, but the sheriff says he was looking for clearer guidance on how many people were being held under this provision and at what cost to taxpayers.
McFadden says he never received a response.
On March 19, McFadden’s Public Information Officer, Sarah Mastouri, reportedly sent a follow-up email to the Media Operations Unit Chief for the Southeast region of ICE. After a brief exchange, the Chief declined to provide any information, citing privacy laws, and directed the Sheriff’s office to file a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request instead. When Mastouri requested an update, she reportedly received the same response.
By March 20, McFadden says he made phone calls to both the Media Operations Unit and the ERO Atlanta Field Office Director. However, McFadden claims that the Media Operations Unit Chief refused to share the names of the detainees and failed to follow up on his promise to connect McFadden with someone who could. When McFadden called the Field Office Director, he left a voicemail and said he never heard back.
Of the 24 people recently arrested in Mecklenburg County, McFadden openly asked: How many of them have been federally charged or indicted?
“If these individuals are as dangerous as ICE suggests, why have no federal charges been filed?” McFadden asked, adding that Mecklenburg County has nearly 12,000 outstanding criminal warrants – many for violent offenses.
ICE continues to focus its efforts on civil immigration violations, McFadden argued, while failing to follow the legal procedures to bring these individuals into federal custody.
“There’s nothing outstanding about these 24 undocumented immigrants. They have civil warrants, which are something law enforcement deals with every day,” McFadden said. “If ICE believes they pose a serious threat, they should be filing the necessary federal charges to ensure they are prosecuted.”
The alleged lack of communication and transparency between ICE and the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office continues. As McFadden sees it, the situation reflects a broader failure to prioritize public safety and follow proper legal channels.
This is a Developing Story. Check back for updates
