Sanctuary Sheriff Under Investigation For Alleged Extortion, Corruption

A longtime sanctuary sheriff allegedly threatened a lawmaker over pro-immigration enforcement legislation and made employees drive to strip clubs.

Democratic Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden is under investigation for corruption and other alleged impropriety, state officials confirmed to the Daily Caller News Foundation. The accusations threaten the political career of the North Carolina sheriff, who has long opposed working with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) since entering office in late 2018.

McFadden is facing calls to be removed from office on the grounds of “willful misconduct or maladministration in office,” “corruption,” “extortion” and other alleged unlawful activity, according to a letter Mecklenburg County District Attorney Spencer Merriweather submitted to the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI).

“The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) has received a request from the Mecklenburg County District Attorney to investigate allegations contained in a petition for the removal of Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden,” the SBI told the DCNF.  “The request has been assigned to the SBI’s Professional Standards unit for investigation,” the statement continued.

Among the accusations against McFadden are a claim by State Rep. Carla Cunningham, a moderate Democrat who represents the Charlotte area, who says the sheriff called her and threatened her not to vote to override the governor’s veto of House Bill 318, which would require sheriffs in the state to keep illegal migrants wanted by ICE detained for up to 48 hours.

The sheriff allegedly called Cunningham last year and said that individuals in her district would “come after” her if she voted in favor of the override and said, “I don’t want to see you get hurt, you live in my county,” according to a sworn affidavit obtained by local media. The Democratic lawmaker believes the statements were “a threat by McFadden to either physically harm her, or to withdraw or refuse her any protection from members of the public who would physically harm her.”

Cunningham ultimately joined Republicans to vote in favor of the bill and the GOP-controlled state legislature overrode Democrat Gov. Josh Stein’s veto.

McFadden also allegedly retaliated against employees, used country employees to unlawfully conduct work on his campaign website and directed deputies to drive officials to strip clubs and bars, according to the accusations.

“The Sheriff is aware of the removal petition; however, we are not releasing a statement at this time,” a spokesperson for the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office told the DCNF on Wednesday.

McFadden’s fraught relationship with federal immigration authorities began as soon as he was sworn into office in December 2018, with the sanctuary sheriff immediately refusing to honor ICE detainers and repeatedly releasing criminal illegal migrants back into the community. Highlighting the seriousness of the issue, ICE in August 2019 released a list of the numerous criminal illegal migrants he released from county custody.

The embattled sheriff has also attracted national scrutiny for public statements he made about the killings of Charlie Kirk and Iryna Zarutska, a Ukrainian woman who was fatally stabbed in a subway train in Mecklenburg County in 2025. In December, McFadden suggested it’s the judges who are victimized for their rulings following such high-profile crimes.

“And so they live in fear now and I have to say that because for an entire day we had to talk to the magistrates on how to live safely, how to travel safely and in the middle of all of that they were concerned after the shooting of Charlie Kirk because they said to me, ‘well what if they shoot me because of this?’” he said at the time. 

McFadden confirmed in November 2025 that he is seeking re-election to a third term this year.