Charlotte immigration raids cost Manolo’s Bakery more than $50K, court filing shows
Details tucked inside a lawsuit accusing federal immigration agents of attacking or arresting U.S. citizens and a visa holder in North Carolina without warrants or probable cause offer a look at the scope of the raids’ economic impact.
Manuel “Manolo” Betancur — a well-known businessman and activist in Charlotte — owns Manolo’s Bakery, which became a central gathering spot for peaceful protest during the November immigration raids in Charlotte.
Betancur closed his shop Nov. 15 after watching federal agents jump out of cars and handcuff people on the street as he walked to his bakery that morning, fearful that “federal immigration agents might enter the bakery and place his Latino customers and staff in danger,” the lawsuit says.
The more than weeklong closure hit Manolo’s hard. He previously told CharlotteFive: “It’s not the first time we’ve ever had a hard time in this business, but I’m not going to give up.”
But the filing offers a deeper look at the losses suffered by the Latin bakery, which primarily serves customers originally from Central and South America.
“Mr. Betancur estimated that he lost between approximately $50,000-$64,000, as well as his biggest wholesale customer, due to being closed,” the lawsuit said.
The closure carried a human toll, as well.
“As a result of the November raids, Manolo’s Bakery lost multiple employees because they did not feel safe coming to work, even though they were citizens or lawfully present; they were too afraid that federal immigration agents would still arrest them,” the suit continued.
The lawsuit said its four plaintiffs are U.S. citizens and one is a visa holder. They are being represented by the ACLU, Southern Coalition for Social Justice and Democracy Forward, seeking a class action case in federal court in Charlotte, The Charlotte Observer’s Ryan Oehrli previously reported.
The plaintiffs have asked a judge to bar Department of Homeland Security agents from Immigrations and Customs Enforcement or the U.S. Border Patrol from making arrests without warrants or probable cause. DHS told the Observer in a prepared statement: “There are no ‘indiscriminate’ stops being made,” DHS said
