911 calls from ‘Charlotte’s Web’ detail death threats, drag races and more
“They’re running red lights all over Charlotte,” one woman told 911.
“This guy’s walking up to me. I don’t have to roll my window down, do I?” another asked moments before a federal agent could be heard in the background.
“My cousin has been abducted by ICE, and he’s a U.S. citizen,” someone else said.
From Nov. 17 to Nov. 24, Charlotteans called 911 and reported that federal agents threatened them and created mayhem more generally, recordings of the calls show. Other callers complained about loud protests on Central Avenue.
The Charlotte Observer obtained 38 recordings through a public records request. They offer a look into how the Queen City responded to heavy U.S. Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity. Earlier this month, the Observer reported on an earlier set of 911 calls in which a Border Patrol agent reported that someone broke into his vehicle at a LongHorn Steakhouse.
The city edited out callers’ names, addresses and other identifying information before providing the recordings to The Charlotte Observer.
Residents report being followed
Several people reported that they were followed by federal agents, or that people they knew were.
One woman told 911 that her daughter saw a black Dodge Charger “driving erratically” in the city, and followed it from a distance, suspecting the driver was a federal agent.
After that, the mother said, agents pulled up to her house.
“They have pulled up our registration on our car — which is not theirs to pull up and find out our personal information — and told her, ‘Time to go home, little girl,”’ the woman said.
She raged over the phone to a dispatcher, adding that her daughter was 5’1 and “all of 118 pounds.”
After a long pause, the dispatcher said he would have a police sergeant call her.
Frequently in the recordings, Charlotteans were told they would get a call from the police later.
In another incident, one man said that agents followed his wife and her friend, and that he noticed via the location on her phone that she had not moved in seven minutes.
As he described the situation to a dispatcher, he pulled up to the scene and saw his wife, as well as agents, he said. The call ended with the dispatcher telling him to call back if things escalated.
Often, CMPD had few answers for people calling in.
One woman reported that her cousin, a citizen, was arrested by ICE. She learned what happened when she saw a video on Facebook.
“I understand your concerns. I’m sorry you guys are going through this,” a dispatcher said.
The dispatcher added that someone with CMPD would call the woman.
Agents heard over the phone
Some of the phone calls captured the fracas happening in Charlotte more directly.
“I don’t have to roll down my window, do I?” one woman asked 911 as a federal agent approached her at a Kangaroo Express convenience store on North Tryon Street.
The call caught the rest of the interaction.
“Stop following us! First warning,” the agent told her.
“I’m on the phone with 911 actually—” she started.
“This is your first warning to stop following us,” he said again.
They argued some more, and the agent told her that she would be arrested for impeding if she continued.
In another call, a man told 911 that agents were “right on my ass” in the Eastway Crossing parking lot.
“They keep trying to block my path, and there’s actually four of them trying to ram into my car,” he said.
A dispatcher asked if he was pulled over. Before he could answer, the only sound was shouts of, “Get on the ground! Get on the ground!”
The call continued with no response as the dispatcher asked, “Hello? 911.”
Complaints about protesters
Some in Charlotte called not to report agents, but protesters. Several callers lamented the noise on Central Avenue, as protests there turned into block parties that went into the night.
Some callers worried for the safety of people they believed were drag racing. Others just wanted a break from the noise.
Police were aware of the situation, dispatchers told callers.
Other protesters at a Home Depot on Wendover Boulevard refused to leave the property, a worker said. They weren’t violent, but they needed to leave, he said.
Some complaints were more granular. One caller admitted as much and said he wasn’t sure his issue was an emergency.
He spotted a car with “basically, derogatory language towards ICE and border enforcement.”
“You’ve got a car sitting there with, basically, ‘F You’ all over the windows,” he told 911. “Whatever you’ve got to do to deal with these animals, can you go over there and do what you can? It’s in my neighborhood, too. It’s three, four doors down from me.”
At the end of the call, he volunteered the fact that he was a United States citizen.
Another man asked for police to be sent to a hotel in the Steele Creek area because “girls with hoodies on” pulled out their cellphones and recorded him and his Ford F-150, apparently believing he was a federal agent.
“I don’t know why they’re looking for ICE anyway. Sounds like a dumb job to take on if you’re a regular person,” he said.
One woman worried for protesters, sharing that someone who drove by Central Avenue referenced “what happened to Charlie Kirk” happening to them.
Calls from Border Patrol
A desk worker at a different hotel on West Arrowood Road called in to let police know that six vehicles that she believed belonged to federal agents had been vandalized.
The hotel was getting regular prank calls, too, she said.
In another call, someone who claimed he was with Border Patrol said he wanted to report a possible “hit” put out on one of his agents.
A dispatcher said a police sergeant would be in touch.
Ryan Oehrli covers criminal justice in the Charlotte region for The Charlotte Observer. His work is produced with financial support from the nonprofit The Just Trust. The Observer maintains full editorial control of its journalism.