As part of a sweeping immigration crackdown in Charlotte this week, U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested a Nicaraguan man who had been working as a car mechanic in east Charlotte. Records reviewed by WFAE didn't show any criminal history for the man — consistent with Border Patrol statistics that show a majority of those taken into custody did not.
Julio Cesar Mojica Bermudez, 33, had been working at Central Friends Tires on Central Avenue for about five months, according to the auto shop's owner, Yessica Arias, and had been sending money to his family in Nicaragua as he sought asylum in the U.S.
"He's one of the best workers here," Arias said, describing him as "a hard-working guy."
"He starts at 8, but he's here at 7:30 every day, from Monday to Saturday," she said.
The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to WFAE's requests for more information on Bermudez's detention.
Bermudez had already opened the store on Saturday when U.S. Border Patrol agents arrived in a white, unmarked SUV at 9:16 a.m.
Arias shared security footage from her shop's cameras showing Bermudez and two other men running through the shop's parking lot. The two men dashed inside the store, while Bermudez sprinted across a crosswalk and down a sidewalk, followed closely by two agents who jumped out of the SUV, chased him down the sidewalk and tackled him to the ground.
Bermudez left his cell phone at his work station, Arias said, and staff have been unable to reach him since.
Car mechanic had no U.S. criminal history, a WFAE analysis finds
Arias shared photographs of Bermudez's Nicaraguan passport and U.S. immigration papers with WFAE.
Using the information, WFAE was able to review Bermudez's history in the U.S., including a review of all publicly available North Carolina court records and federal court records available through the online PACER court system.
Bermudez did not appear in any criminal filings. He also did not appear in the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office online arrest inquiry, which normally lists local arrests.
Bermudez had been seeking asylum in the U.S. and had been scheduled for a hearing at the Charlotte USCIS office in May 2024, according to papers he left behind.
President Trump has claimed that federal immigration officers are only targeting "dangerous criminals" and the "worst of the worst."
Out of the more than 130 people arrested over the weekend, federal spokesman Rob Brisley said 44 had criminal histories, including charges such as aggravated assault, assault with a dangerous weapon, assault on a police officer, battery, driving under the influence and hit-and-run.
That's 32% of those arrested — implying that the other 68% did not have a known criminal history.
In a statement, Brisley also said that Border Patrol agents arrested two gang members, out of the 130 people taken into custody. He said the people detained were in the U.S. illegally.
But Arias said the community is seeing more working people questioned and detained.
"The Border Patrol is not here for criminals," Arias said from outside her shop. "They are here for working people — working people. They just grab you."
Few details known about the 130 people detained across Charlotte
Border Patrol agents took 130 people into custody across Charlotte during the first two days of their citywide immigration crackdown, with their efforts apparently concentrated along the city's main immigrant corridors.
Only 11 of the detainees have been identified by the federal government. In a news release on Sunday, DHS published the names and photos of who they said were the "worst of the worst," including those with serious prior criminal charges.
WFAE has requested the names and charges of the other 119 detainees from this weekend's operation.
Immigration advocates have accused federal agents of aggressive tactics and racial profiling — pointing to videos of agents questioning landscapers as they hung Christmas lights in a Charlotte woman's front yard, approaching people outside Hispanic supermarkets, and breaking the car window of an Hispanic man who later said he was a U.S. citizen.
Arias, the tire shop owner, said with her lead mechanic taken by federal agents, she would have to close up shop indefinitely.
"They said they came to Charlotte to clean up the city, but they are taking the hard working people," Arias said. "So now we got to close up the business. We have no workers. People are scared."
