{"id":3988,"date":"2026-07-31T16:10:31","date_gmt":"2026-07-31T16:10:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=3988"},"modified":"2026-07-31T16:10:31","modified_gmt":"2026-07-31T16:10:31","slug":"immigration-agents-detained-nc-teen-despite-us-citizenship-why-hes-seeking-damages","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=3988","title":{"rendered":"Immigration agents detained NC teen despite US citizenship. Why he\u2019s seeking damages"},"content":{"rendered":"<article><!-- --><!-- --><!-- WPS-5038 -- removed the script from WPS and added the placeholder for trinity player --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- CONTENT --><!--[--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>An Apex teen who was detained last year by immigration agents despite being a U.S. citizen is now seeking damages from the Trump administration for what he says was a wrongful arrest and \u201cunjust\u201d treatment by the officers.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=3986\">Man involved in 2023 Camden nightclub shooting faces 15 years in prison, DOJ says<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>On Nov. 18, Fernando Vazquez Orea \u2014 who was born in Raleigh and was 18 when he was detained \u2014 was working a landscaping job in Cary when he was approached by immigration officers near the work site, The News &amp; Observer previously reported. The agents allegedly pinned him against a gate, handcuffed him \u2014 and despite seeing his N.C. Real ID \u2014 detained him and put him in the back of an unmarked SUV.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>That interaction, and the treatment that followed, now serve as the basis of Vazquez\u2019s argument \u2014 filed by the ACLU of North Carolina in a flurry of other legal claims. He alleges immigration officers targeted him based on the color of his skin and mistreated him during the arrest.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe entire experience left me feeling powerless, frightened, humiliated, and deeply shaken,\u201d Vazquez wrote in a statement announcing the legal challenge. \u201cIt has had a lasting emotional impact on me. I believe what happened to me was unjust, and I am seeking accountability and justice for what I experienced.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately return a request Thursday for comment.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The immigration stop came on the heels of the Trump administration\u2019s \u201cOperation Charlotte\u2019s Web\u201d that aimed to target \u201cthe worst of the worst\u201d of violent criminals in the Charlotte area, with federal agents also targeting towns across the Triangle.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Vazquez said after immigration agents understood he was born in the U.S., one of the officers starting swearing, pulled over to an \u201cisolated wooded area,\u201d tossed his wallet and cards out of the vehicle and \u201cdumped him there,\u201d leaving him to find his way back to the job site, the ACLU alleges.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=3985\">Popular Gamecock boutique Miss Cocky plans new Midlands location. Here\u2019s where<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Vazquez took a video of the interaction, which amassed more than 9 million views on TikTok, with viewers voicing outrage about the immigration officers\u2019 \u201cinsane\u201d treatment of him.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The Raleigh native graduated from Vernon Malone College and Career Academy in Raleigh and was detained just minutes away from his former middle school, Reedy Creek. His parents are from Mexico, and his father \u2014 who has a legal work permit and was in the process of obtaining citizenship as of November \u2014 works with him as a landscaper.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Vazquez\u2019s experience felt like \u201cgetting kidnapped,\u201d he told The N&amp;O in November.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe encounter left Mr. Vazquez with wrist injuries from the handcuffs and lasting emotional trauma, including persistent anxiety, difficulty sleeping, and fear of being stopped and detained again simply because he is Latino,\u201d the ACLU said.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<h2>Claims filed against Trump administration<\/h2>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Vazquez\u2019s damage claim joins more than 50 other across 17 states filed by the ACLU on behalf of people allegedly harmed by federal law enforcement under the Trump administration.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>That includes U.S. citizen Willy Wender Aceituno, of Charlotte, who alleges immigration agents shattered his truck\u2019s window, pulled him from his vehicle and threw him onto the broken glass. The ACLU alleges federal agents then drove away with Aceituno \u2014 even though he told federal agents he was a U.S. citizen \u2014 and left him on the side of the road while bleeding.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cMr. Vazquez and Mr. Aceituno\u2019s damages claims are part of a national effort to hold the federal government accountable and challenge the unlawful and abusive tactics that have harmed communities across our state and country,\u201d Corina Scott, a staff Attorney at the ACLU of N.C., wrote in a statement. \u201cNorth Carolinians have repeatedly witnessed and experienced these harms firsthand, and these claims are a meaningful step toward accountability and recourse.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=3984\">Popular Gamecock boutique Miss Cocky plans Midlands location. Here\u2019s where<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--]--><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A teen born in Raleigh who was detained by ICE immigration agents despite his citizenship seeks damages, alleging racial profiling, injury and lasting emotional trauma.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3987,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3988","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-education"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Immigration agents detained NC teen despite US citizenship. 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