North Carolina officials are demanding answers after an illegal immigrant who is allegedly on the terror watchlist was arrested in a close by community, threatening the safety of its residents.
North Carolina Lt. Gov. and Republican candidate for governor Mark Robinson is calling on President Joe Biden to explain why an armed known terror watchlist suspect was arrested when he insists the southern border is “secure.”
Last week, after a four-hour-long standoff last week in Eure, North Carolina in Gates County, Awet Hagos was arrested after firing gunshots at a Quick Stop before attempting to grab a gun from a police officer.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Hagos has been residing in the United States since 2016 on a non-immigrant visa. However, officials confirmed that the 32-year-old immigrant overstayed that visa, making him an illegal alien.
Robinson argued that the state’s 12 deputies should never have had to be involved with the “violent illegal immigrant” in the first place, blaming Biden’s open border policies. In a letter, the Republican is demanding the Biden Administration to take accountability for dangers and threats his state has endured.
“I called on President Biden to give immediate answers,” Robinson said during a press conference. “How did Hagos enter the United States? How did Hagos get to North Carolina? Did he travel by air, interstate, or rail? Are there other places that he’s been in our state that he’s traveled to or through, and should those areas be on alert?”
Robinson pointed out that Hagos was living just an hour outside of several military installations in both North Carolina and Virginia, stressing the need to know if the illegal alien has any terrorist ties.
Other questions Robinson demanded for the Biden Administration to answer in his letter include:
- What are Hagos’ suspected ties to terrorist groups and/or activities?
- When Hagos applied for and was denied American citizenship, why was he not detained then, and how and who locally was alerted to his whereabouts at that time?
- Is the Federal Government aware of any other potential terrorist suspects in North Carolina?
“The silence from the Biden administration on this situation is not an isolated incident,” Robinson continued. “Not even our elected officials in Congress or the Senate have been able to get any answers from him. Last week, members of our federal delegation wrote a letter demanding answers regarding a migrant housing facility in Greensboro. They received no information from the Biden Administration despite this facility going online.”
Roughly half a million illegal immigrants reside in North Carolina, with very little information from the Biden Administration about the threat they may carry to the state.
Hagos was charged with assaulting a government official, resisting arrest, and carrying a concealed weapon. ICE confirmed that they have placed a detainer on the illegal immigrant and have requested custody of him should he be released from jail.