Video from Charlotte shows Border Patrol agents pointing a rifle into a vehicle, breaking a window and detaining two U.S. women after alleging they used their horn to warn neighbors about immigration enforcement. Relatives say agents chased the vehicle before the confrontation; both women were reportedly held at a federal facility and later released with citations. The stop occurred during an intensified DHS enforcement operation that officials say resulted in more than 130 arrests in the first 48 hours. Local attorneys caution that filming is protected but could be interpreted as interference in some circumstances.
Video Shows Border Patrol Agents Break Car Window, Arrest Two U.S. Women After Alleged Horn Alert
Video from Charlotte shows Border Patrol agents pointing a rifle into a vehicle, breaking a window and detaining two U.S. women after alleging they used their horn to warn neighbors about immigration enforcement. Relatives say agents chased the vehicle before the confrontation; both women were reportedly held at a federal facility and later released with citations. The stop occurred during an intensified DHS enforcement operation that officials say resulted in more than 130 arrests in the first 48 hours. Local attorneys caution that filming is protected but could be interpreted as interference in some circumstances.
10:05 PM, 11/19/2025Security
Summary: A viral video from Charlotte, North Carolina, shows Border Patrol agents breaking a car window and detaining two U.S. women after accusing them of honking to warn neighbors about immigration enforcement nearby, relatives and a witness said.
What happened
A video recorded in the Plaza Midwood neighborhood captures an agent pointing a rifle into a vehicle, shouting commands and then breaking the passenger-side window before pulling a woman from the driver’s seat. A second woman, also a U.S. citizen, was taken into custody moments earlier, relatives said.
Family members told reporters the women were accused of using their car horn to alert neighbors that federal immigration officers were operating in the area. Relatives also said agents chased the vehicle along a main road before the stop on the residential street.
Witness account
Neighbor Shea Watts said he began filming after hearing shouting on the street. In his recording he can be heard narrating: “He’s breaking the window. He’s got an assault rifle pointed at her.” Watts described the scene as a mix of disbelief and anger and urged others to document similar encounters.
Detention and outcome
The husband of one of the women said he could not reach either detainee for hours; family members reported they were held at a federal facility before being released and issued citations. The family has not made the women’s names public, citing concerns about retaliation.
Context and legal notes
The incident occurred amid an intensified federal immigration enforcement operation in Charlotte, which officials say led to more than 130 arrests in the first 48 hours. Local attorney Gary Mauney noted that while citizens generally have a First Amendment right to film law enforcement, officers can sometimes claim authority to arrest people they reasonably believe are interfering with operations — and he said warning others about an enforcement presence could be interpreted as interference in some circumstances.
“A reminder that if we see something, to record it,” Watts said, urging bystanders to document law enforcement encounters.
Officials were not immediately available for comment on the stop and its circumstances.
Note: This account is based on family members’ and a witness’s statements and publicly available video of the encounter.