The immigration crackdown in Minnesota continued Tuesday as Department of Homeland Security Kristi Noem returned to the Twin Cities as federal agents made more arrests.
CBS News cameras were there as heavily armed agents raided a St. Paul apartment building Tuesday morning, taking a man from Ecuador in custody. Federal officials claim the man is a convicted felon who is now wanted for murder and sexual assault.
During the arrest, an agent translated the dialogue between Noem and the man, as his wife and child stood nearby. The man said he was not aware he was wanted for any crimes.
“You will be held accountable for your crimes,” Noem said. “We’re taking you away for processing.”
In Bloomington, more than a dozen agents with Immigration and Customs Enforcement — and just as many protesters — were gathered outside Wilderness Inquiry, located a couple of miles west of the Mall of America. ICE agents put a man into one of their squad cars and drove away.
“He is a very sweet guy who just works and doesn’t do anything bad,” the man’s girlfriend told WCCO. “He doesn’t have any arrest warrants or anything in his record for them to do this.”
DHS/WCCO
The scene outside Wilderness Inquiry grew until the man was taken into custody. It was contentious at points, with protesters heckling agents, blowing whistles and shouting.
The man’s girlfriend said he was pulled over by ICE for a traffic stop around 7:30 a.m. He got scared and took off, running into the building for cover. She said agents were only let in after a warrant was presented to the building’s owners.
“It makes me sad because we’re all here for a reason,” said witness Gloria Espinoza. “So it does make me feel very emotional.”
Homeland Security kicked off Operation Metro Surge last month, which officials say led to about 700 arrests and largely targeted Somali Minnesotans. On Sunday, the department announced the funneling of about 2,000 more federal agents into the Twin Cities metro area in a monthlong surge amid the state’s widening fraud scandal.
A former Homeland Security official tells CBS News the operation is “a massive resource allocation” with Minneapolis now seen as “the new Chicago” in terms of recent federal law enforcement deployments.
The move also came just hours before Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz announced he won’t run for reelection in the midst of the unrelenting federal bombardment. In a press conference Tuesday morning, Walz called the crackdown a “ridiculous surge” that’s a “show” for the cameras.
“I don’t think any governor in history has had to fight a war against the federal government every single day,” Walz said.
This story will be updated.
Beret Leone
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