THE mayor of Raleigh in North Carolina, Janet Cowell, warned on Monday that federal immigration authorities will likely expand their enforcement action to the state’s capital city as soon as Tuesday.

United States Customs and Border Protection agents are currently operating in Charlotte following a weekend that saw arrests of more than 130 people in that city.

Mayor Cowell said she didn’t know how large the operation would be or how long agents would be present. Immigration authorities haven’t spoken about it.

Ms Cowell, a Democrat, said in a statement that crime was lower in Raleigh this year compared to last and that public safety was a priority for her and the city council.

“I ask Raleigh to remember our values and maintain peace and respect through any upcoming challenges,” Mayor Cowell said in a statement.

US immigration agents arrested more than 130 people over the weekend in a sweep through Charlotte, North Carolina’s largest city, a federal official said Monday.

The Trump administration has made Charlotte, a Democratic city of about 950,000 people, its latest focus for an immigration enforcement surge it says will combat crime, despite local opposition and declining crime rates.

Residents reported encounters with immigration agents near churches, blocks of flats and shops.

Homeland Security assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement that Border Patrol officers had arrested more than “130 illegal aliens who have all broken” immigration laws.

Social media videos have shown masked, heavily armed agents in paramilitary gear driving unmarked cars, targeting people with no more apparent evidence than the colour of their skin.

Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles said on Monday that she was “deeply concerned” about the videos she’s seen of the crackdown but also said she appreciates protesters’ peacefulness.

“To everyone in Charlotte who is feeling anxious or fearful: you are not alone. Your city stands with you,” she said in a statement.