U visa holder arrested without warrant during North Carolina immigration enforcement sweep
Feb 24, 2026·Location: NC

Ruben Arguera Lopez, 39, a cook who holds a U visa for crime victims who assist law enforcement, was arrested without a warrant by ICE and CBP agents during immigration enforcement operations in North Carolina. He has lived in Charlotte for 15 years and obtained humanitarian protection after helping law enforcement investigate a serious crime. He is one of five plaintiffs—including four U.S. citizens—in a federal class-action lawsuit filed in February 2026 against the Department of Homeland Security, ICE, CBP, and Border Patrol, alleging that agents made warrantless arrests without probable cause. The lawsuit covers arrests made between January 20 and October 15, 2025, during which ICE arrested 3,304 people in North Carolina, more than 2.8 times the total during the same period in 2024.
Timeline
Sources
- eu.courierpostonline.com
- eu.augustachronicle.com
- Five Individuals Launch Class Action Lawsuit Over Warrantless Immigration Arrests in North Carolina - ACLU of North Carolina
- casefilingsalert.com
- CourtListener
- democracyforward.org
- North Carolina Immigration Lawsuit Seeks To Block Warrantless ICE Arrests
thencbeat.com·Feb 25, 2026·archived copy
- columbiatribune.com
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