A man sprayed Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar with an unknown liquid at a town hall in Minneapolis on Tuesday, but she vowed not to be intimidated and declined to immediately leave the event to get checked out.
The man was immediately apprehended and was booked into Hennepin County Jail for third degree assault, the Minneapolis Police Department told CBS News. Police said Omar was not injured.
Omar, a Democrat, was calling for the abolishment of ICE and for Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to resign when a man sitting in the front row rushed up to her and sprayed her with a substance while yelling at her. Local police said he used a syringe.
Security personnel grabbed the man, who was led out of the room in handcuffs, while other staff tried to get Omar to leave.
Omar refused, saying, “We will continue. These f***ing a**holes are not going to get away with it!”
“Here’s the reality that people like this ugly man don’t understand: We are Minnesota strong and we will stay resilient in the face of whatever they might throw at us,” Omar said, before continuing to speak and take questions for almost 30 minutes.
A man rushed at Rep. Ilhan Omar during a town hall and sprayed her with an unknown liquid before being tackled by security in Minneapolis on Jan. 27, 2026.
Reuters
Someone in attendance said that whatever was sprayed “smells so bad” and urged Omar to “go get checked.”
The U.S. Capitol Police said in a statement: “Tonight, a man is in custody after he decided to assault a Member of Congress – an unacceptable decision that will be met with swift justice.”
“We are now working with our federal partners to see this man faces the most serious charges possible to deter this kind of violence in our society,” the agency continued.
“I’m a survivor so this small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work,” she wrote. “I don’t let bullies win.”
The incident at Omar’s event comes during a tense period in Minneapolis following the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti by two Customs and Border Protection agents on Saturday, which prompted days of protests.
Thousands of federal immigration agents have been deployed to the Twin Cities area since last month as part of a crackdown by the Trump administration that has drawn stiff criticism from Omar and other local politicians.
Omar is the second House Democrat to be physically confronted in recent days. In an unrelated incident, Rep. Maxwell Frost of Florida said Saturday he was assaulted during an event at the Sundance Film Festival. Local police in Park City, Utah, alleged that a man “unlawfully entered a private party” and assaulted the congressman and one other person. He was arrested on charges of simple assault and aggravated burglary, police said.
Members of Congress have faced a significant uptick in threats in recent years. The U.S. Capitol Police says it investigated 14,938 threats and concerning statements against lawmakers, their families and their staff last year, up from 9,474 in 2024 and 8,000 in 2023.
David Adelman couldn’t make sense of what he was watching, but he could make out the neighborhood. Minneapolis was his first NBA home. He knew the city well. Just not in this ravaged state.
“That’s a great community of people,” the first-year head coach of the Nuggets said. “I lived there for five years. And it was just so weird to see exactly where it was in the city, because I knew exactly where it was. And from the drone shot, it looked like a war zone. And that’s the country we live in.”
Before the Nuggets hosted the Pistons on Tuesday night, Adelman took a moment to reflect on the unrest in Minneapolis and the death of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old nurse who was fatally shot by federal agents last Saturday.
“Just as a human being, that’s really hard to watch,” he said. “I’d say beyond that, if you want to look at this in layers, how do you explain it to your kids? It’s tough. My kids are of an age where they know what’s going on. Watching that video and trying to explain it to them makes you realize that I don’t know what the hell is going on either.”
The NBA postponed last Saturday’s game between the Timberwolves and Warriors “to prioritize the safety and security of the Minneapolis community” after the shooting of Pretti, according to a statement from the league.
The game was made up on Sunday, with anti-ICE chants echoing through Target Center at the end of a pregame moment of silence for Pretti. The day before Pretti’s death, mass protests had been held in Minneapolis speaking out against the federal government’s deployment of ICE to enforce Donald Trump’s immigration policy. Renee Good was shot and killed on Jan. 7 in Minneapolis amid the crackdown.
“For the second time in less than three weeks, we’ve lost another beloved member of our community in the most unimaginable way,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said through tears on Sunday. “As an organization, we are heartbroken for what we are having to witness and endure and watch. We just want to extend our thoughts, prayers and concern for Mr. Pretti, family, all the loved ones and everyone involved in such an unconscionable situation in a community that we really love, full of people who are, by nature, peaceful and prideful. We just stand in support of our great community here.”
Adelman, 44, was an assistant coach for the Timberwolves under his father, Naismith Hall of Famer Rick Adelman, from 2011-16. It was his first job in the NBA in a career that eventually led him to Denver, where he replaced Michael Malone as the Nuggets’ head coach in April.
In Denver, protesters held a rally against ICE and the Trump administration’s immigration policy on Sunday at the Capitol.
“It’s not about politics,” Adelman said. “It’s about human beings just taking care of each other, even if you don’t agree with each other. So yeah, extremely hard to watch. … I just hope we can figure it out. It’s supposed to be a bipartisan country. Hopefully, we can do that, come together. Whatever your main political views are, let’s not shoot each other.”
Two U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents fired their weapons during the fatal shooting of Minneapolis ICU nurse Alex Pretti over the weekend, according to a government report sent to Congress and obtained by CBS News that does not mention Pretti reaching for his firearm.
The report was shared with congressional officials Tuesday by CBP, which said it was based on a “preliminary review” by its Office of Professional Responsibility. It provides the most comprehensive official account yet of Pretti’s killing, which has triggered widespread outcry from members of both parties.
According to the report to Congress, CBP agents were conducting an operation in Minneapolis on Saturday morning when an officer was “confronted by two female civilians blowing whistles.” The officer ordered the women to “move out of the roadway,” the report said. That’s when CBP agents first encountered Pretti.
“The [CBP officer] pushed them both away and one of the females ran to a male, later identified as 37-year-old Alex Jeffrey Pretti, a US citizen,” the report said. “The [CBP officer] attempted to move the woman and Pretti out of the roadway. The woman and Pretti did not move. The [CBP officer] deployed his oleoresin capsicum (OC) spray towards both Pretti and the woman.”
CBP agents then “attempted to take Pretti into custody,” according to the report.
“Pretti resisted CBP personnel’s efforts and a struggle ensued. During the struggle, a BPA yelled, ‘He’s got a gun!’ multiple times,” the report said.
“Approximately five seconds later, a [Border Patrol agent] discharged his CBP-issued Glock 19 and a [CBP officer] also discharged his CBP-issued Glock 47 at Pretti. After the shooting, a BPA advised he had possession of Pretti’s firearm,” CBP added. “The BPA subsequently cleared and secured Pretti’s firearm in his vehicle.”
The new information provided by CBP differs from the initial accounts offered by the Department of Homeland Security, which said in a statement over the weekend that one Border Patrol agent had fired “defensive shots.”
In that statement, DHS also said Pretti “approached” the CBP agents with a 9mm semi-automatic firearm. But CBP’s report to Congress makes no claim that Pretti tried to reach for his firearm.
In the hours after the shooting, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem alleged that Pretti approached federal agents with a gun in what she described as an effort to kill officers, and Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino accused Pretti of trying to “massacre law enforcement” — allegations that did not appear in the Office of Professional Responsibility’s report.
The government’s response to Pretti’s death — the second fatal shooting by federal agents in Minneapolis this month — has drawn intense scrutiny in recent days, as videos of the incident appear to contradict officials’ claims that Pretti approached law enforcement with his gun.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara has said Pretti was a lawful gun owner with a permit to carry.
The report does not state that Pretti’s gun discharged accidentally, one theory that has circulated in the wake of the shooting. President Trump alleged in a Wall Street Journal article that Pretti was carrying a “dangerous and unpredictable gun” that “goes off when people don’t know it.”
It also revealed that U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel removed and stored Pretti’s firearm in a government vehicle, a decision now raising broader concerns about the integrity of the investigation.
According to a CBP report sent to congressional officials, a Border Patrol agent reported taking possession of Pretti’s gun immediately after the shooting and later clearing and securing the firearm inside a vehicle. The report does not specify whether the weapon was photographed in place or logged with a documented chain of custody at the scene.
CBS News previously reported that federal investigators have no documented chain of custody for Pretti’s handgun, with officials saying the firearm was placed on the seat of a vehicle rather than sealed in a required plastic evidence bag and labeled with standard identifying details such as date, item description, and handler name.
The report to Congress confirmed ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations branch is investigating the shooting, a move current and former agency officials described as highly unusual for an office that has historically not investigated use-of-force incidents. The report said CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility is also reviewing the incident internally, and that the DHS Inspector General has been notified.
CBP told CBS News in a statement: “These notifications reflect standard Customs and Border Protection protocol and are issued in accordance with existing procedures. They provide an initial outline of an event that took place and do not convey any definitive conclusion or investigative findings. They are factual reports – not analytical judgments – and are provided to inform Congress and to promote transparency.”
The full report is below:
The following statement pertains to an in-custody death that occurred on Saturday, January 24, 2026, in Minneapolis, MN. This information is based on a preliminary review by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) Investigative Operations Directorate (IOD) and may be updated and clarified as additional details become available. It is being provided to Committee staff concurrently with CBP senior leadership to ensure timely reporting.
CBP OPR IOD established the following information and timeline based on a preliminary review of body worn camera footage and CBP documentation.
On January 24, 2026, United States Border Patrol (USBP) Border Patrol Agents (BPAs) and Customs and Border Protection Officers (CBPOs) supporting Operation Metro Surge were conducting enforcement actions near the intersection of Nicollet Ave. and 26th St. in Minneapolis, MN. Several civilians were in the area yelling and blowing whistles. BPAs and CBPOs made several verbal requests for the civilians to stay on the sidewalks and out of the roadway.
At approximately 9:00 a.m., a CBPO was confronted by two female civilians blowing whistles. The CBPO ordered the female civilians to move out of the roadway, and the female civilians did not move. The CBPO pushed them both away and one of the females ran to a male, later identified as 37-year-old Alex Jeffrey Pretti, a US citizen. The CBPO attempted to move the woman and Pretti out of the roadway. The woman and Pretti did not move. The CBPO deployed his oleoresin capsicum (OC) spray towards both Pretti and the woman.
CBP personnel attempted to take Pretti into custody. Pretti resisted CBP personnel’s efforts and a struggle ensued. During the struggle, a BPA yelled, “He’s got a gun!” multiple times. Approximately five seconds later, a BPA discharged his CBP-issued Glock 19 and a CBPO also discharged his CBP-issued Glock 47 at Pretti. After the shooting, a BPA advised he had possession of Pretti’s firearm. The BPA subsequently cleared and secured Pretti’s firearm in his vehicle.
At approximately 9:02 a.m., CBP personnel cut Pretti’s clothing and provided medical aid to him by placing chest seals on his wounds. At approximately 9:05 a.m., Minneapolis Fire Department Emergency Medical Services (MFD EMS) emergency medical technicians (EMTs) arrived and assumed primary medical care for Pretti.
At approximately 9:14 a.m., MFD EMTs placed Pretti in an MFD EMS ambulance and he was subsequently transported to Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC). At approximately 9:32 a.m., HCMC medical personnel pronounced Pretti deceased.
CBP OPR IOD was advised that an autopsy would be conducted by medical personnel from the Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office. CBP OPR IOD will request the official findings upon completion.
Homeland Security Investigations is investigating the incident and CBP OPR IOD is reviewing it. The Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General was notified.
Changes are coming to federal immigration enforcement in Minnesota.
Days after the shooting death of Alex Pretti by federal agents, the Trump administration pulled back Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino from the state and brought in border czar Tom Homan instead.
Some have suggested the move sidelines Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, but President Donald Trump has said he still supports her in that role.
“She absolutely should be fired by the president,” said Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Massachusetts.
President Donald Trump talked about the killing of Alex Pretti while visting a restaurant in Iowa.
Democrats believe this is a critical moment. Moulton traveled to Minneapolis on Tuesday and spoke with NBC10 Boston shortly after landing, applauding the president’s most recent steps, but couching that praise with a stark reminder.
“I guess there’s a little bit of hope in some of the actions that the administration is taking, but let’s be clear, they’re only taking these actions because two American patriots are dead on the streets of Minneapolis,” he said.
The congressman is in Minnesota in an official capacity carrying out Congressional oversight duties.
“This could be coming to Massachusetts next, so we need to be prepared, and there’s no better way to prepare for Massachusetts than to understand what’s going on in Minneapolis,” Moulton said.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said President Trump has not labeled Alex Pretti a domestic terrorist and will let the investigation determine the facts.
Others, like fellow Democratic Rep. Jake Auchincloss of Massachusetts, are calling on Congress to act.
“The president is starting to buckle,” said Auchincloss. “Which means that those of us who support the Constitution and civil rights and due process need to press even harder.”
The White House has faced similar criticism from Republicans in the wake of this weekend’s shooting. Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina and Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, both Republicans, joined a chorus of Democratic lawmakers calling for Noem’s resignation, NBC News reported Tuesday.
Local GOP strategists say the recent pivot in Minnesota is warranted.
“I think the president, taking the initiative to understand that tensions are probably higher than anybody anticipated it becoming, I think he did the right thing,” said Republican strategist Ozzie Palomo.
Even so, Trump maintains immigration enforcement is needed in Minnesota and beyond. “We can’t lose sight of the fact,” he told reporters before departing the White House.
Minneapolis mayor, police chief meet with border czar
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Police Chief Brian O’Hara met Tuesday morning with Border Czar Tom Homan, according to the mayor’s office.
The meeting came just hours after Homan met with Gov. Tim Walz.
In a statement Tuesday afternoon, Frey said he “appreciated” the conversation, noting he pressed Homan on the urgent need to end Operation Metro Surge, and stressed the toll its taken on his city’s officers, residents and the entire Twin Cities community.
“I also made it clear that Minneapolis does not and will not enforce federal immigration laws, and that we will remain focused on keeping our neighbors and streets safe,” Frey said. “City leaders will continue to stay in conversation with Mr. Homan and his team.”
Sources tell WCCO that the meetings between Homan, Walz and Frey were purposefully low profile with no press or pictures as part of an overall effort by local officials and the Trump administration to bring down tensions.
Homan is known as an immigration and deportation hardliner but in an interview earlier this month with CBS News Anchor Tony Dokoupil, he took a more measured response to the Renee Good shooting, which had happened earlier that day.
“It would be unprofessional to comment on what I think happened in that situation. Let the investigation play out and hold people accountable based on the investigation,” he said on Jan. 7.
Judge blocks ICE from deporting or transferring 5-year-old boy and his father
A federal judge has blocked ICE from deporting 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and his father or transferring them away from the Texas region where they’re currently held.
Liam and his father are currently detained at the Dilley ICE detention center for families with underage children.
We exclusively reported last week that the government could not legally deport the family for now, because they have pending immigration court cases.
The Columbia Heights Public School District says 5-year-old Liam Ramos was taken with his father while in their driveway after just arriving home from his preschool classroom. School officials claimed the child was used by agents to knock on the door and ask to be let in, letting officers see if anyone else was home.
As community outrage grew, Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin claimed that “ICE did NOT target a child,” and said he was instead abandoned by his father. They say his father fled federal agents as they approached his vehicle, leaving the child.
DHS officials allege that the father, whom they described as an illegal immigrant from Ecuador, was taken into custody as other ICE officers stayed with the child.
Border Patrol involved in shooting in Arizona; person in critical condition
A person was in critical condition after a shooting involving the U.S. Border Patrol in Arizona on Tuesday, CBS affiliate KOLD-TV reported.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department said on social media it was responding to the shooting in Arivaca, an unincorporated community about 60 miles south of Tucson, close to the U.S.-Mexico border.
Heads of ICE, CBP and USCIS set to testify at House hearing on Feb. 10
Leaders of three immigration enforcement agencies are set to testify before the House Homeland Security Committee next month following a pair of deadly shootings by federal agents in Minneapolis, the panel announced on Tuesday.
Chairman Andrew Garbarino, a New York Republican, said that Todd Lyons, the acting head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, had agreed to testify, along with Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Joseph Edlow. The hearing is scheduled for Feb. 10.
Jeffries says House Democrats will move to impeach Noem if Trump doesn’t fire her
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Tuesday that Democrats will move to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem if she is not fired, marking a shift in how party leadership is handling the effort to confront the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.
“Kristi Noem should be fired immediately, or we will commence impeachment proceedings in the House of Representatives,” the New York Democrat said in a statement. “We can do this the easy way or the hard way.”
The statement was released with Democratic Whip Katherine Clark of Massachusetts and Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar of California.
Democratic Rep. Robin Kelly of Illinois introduced an impeachment resolution on Jan. 14, a week after Renee Good was shot and killed by an ICE officer in Minneapolis. The impeachment effort has picked up steam since Border Patrol agents fatally shot Alex Pretti in Minneapolis on Saturday.
ICE and CBP would keep operating during a shutdown, despite DHS funding fight
Senate Democrats are threatening to block a package to fund major parts of the government this week, including the Department of Homeland Security, following the deadly shooting of a man by federal agents in Minneapolis.
But a partial government shutdown would likely have little impact on the administration’s ongoing immigration enforcement operations, since the relevant DHS agencies received a massive funding infusion in President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act last year. The immigration enforcement agencies would have the funds to continue operating uninterrupted, even if other parts of the government shut down.
Gov. Tim Walz’s office confirmed late Tuesday morning that he has met with border czar Tom Homan.
President Trump on Monday announced that Homan will go to Minneapolis following the fatal shooting of ICU nurse Alex Pretti.
“He has not been involved in that area, but knows and likes many of the people there,” Mr. Trump said. “Tom is tough but fair, and will report directly to me.”
Walz’s office released the following statement on the visit with Homan:
“Governor Walz met with Tom Homan this morning and reiterated Minnesota’s priorities: impartial investigations into the Minneapolis shootings involving federal agents, a swift, significant reduction in the number of federal forces in Minnesota, and an end to the campaign of retribution against Minnesota.
“The Governor and Homan agreed on the need for an ongoing dialogue and will continue working toward those goals, which the President also agreed to yesterday. The Governor tasked the Minnesota Department of Public Safety as the primary liaison to Homan to ensure these goals are met.”
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey also said he will be meeting with Homan to discuss next steps.
Alex Pretti’s sister releases statement: “When does this end?”
CBS News obtained the following statement from Alex Pretti’s sister, Micayla Pretti:
“Alex was kind, generous, and had a way of lighting up every room he walked into. He was incredibly intelligent and deeply passionate, and he made people feel safe. But most importantly, he was my brother. I had the privilege of being his little sister for 32 years. I will never be able to hug him, laugh with him, or cry to him again because of those thugs—and that is a pain no words can fully capture.
“Alex always wanted to make a difference in this world, and it’s devastating that he won’t be here to witness the impact he was making. Through his work at the VA caring for the sickest patients, and passion to advance cancer research, he touched more lives than he probably ever realized. All Alex ever wanted was to help someone—anyone. Even in his very last moments on this earth, he was simply trying to do just that.
“I want to thank everyone who has reached out to my family and me, whether you knew Alex personally or not. The messages, posts, and overwhelming positivity shared about him truly reflect his character, work ethic, and passions. My brother is, and always will be, my hero.
“When does this end? How many more innocent lives must be lost before we say enough? Hearing disgusting lies spread about my brother is absolutely gut-wrenching, and my family is deeply grateful so many people have stood up and helped tell his truth. He would be very proud.”
Milan mayor calls ICE “a militia that kills,” says agents not welcome as part of U.S. Olympic security
The mayor of Milan, Giuseppe Sala, spoke out Tuesday amid reports that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents would have a security role during the upcoming Winter Olympic Games, which are set to begin in Milan on Feb. 6.
“This is a militia that kills,” Sala said in an interview with Italian media. “It’s a militia that enters people’s homes by signing permits for themselves. … It’s clear that they’re not welcome in Milan, there’s no doubt about that.”
Minnesota judge orders ICE chief to appear in court, warns of possible contempt proceedings
The chief judge of the U.S. District Court in Minnesota ordered the acting head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement to appear in his courtroom in-person on Friday and explain why he should not be held in contempt of court for violating an earlier order.
Judge Patrick Schiltz wrote in a brief three-page order that the Trump administration has failed to comply with “dozens” of court orders in recent weeks, which has resulted in “significant hardship” to immigrants who have been arrested and detained as part of Operation Metro Surge.
Georgia Sen. Warnock to visit Alex Pretti memorial, meet with faith leaders
Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock plans to travel to Minneapolis Tuesday to visit a memorial for Alex Pretti and meet with faith leaders, CBS News has confirmed. The trip comes days after Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care nurse at the Department of Veterans Affairs, was shot and killed Saturday in south Minneapolis by a U.S. Border Patrol agent.
Federal judge again declines to grant restraining order against DHS in Minnesota
A federal judge on Monday declined to issue a decision in Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison’s bid to end to Operation Metro Surge.
The state of Minnesota and the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul are seeking a temporary restraining order in their lawsuit against Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and other Trump administration officials, arguing the influx of thousands of immigration agents to the state has caused “tremendous damage.”
Tricia McLaughlin, U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s assistant secretary, previously called the suit “baseless.”
Judge Kate Menendez, an appointee of former President Joe Biden, said at the end of Monday’s hearing she is going to take the time “to do everything I can to get it right” on whatever final decision she makes.
Sales surge at Minneapolis bookstore after resonating photo of owner at protest
Greg Ketter has spent nearly five decades selling comic books and science fiction novels at DreamHaven Books and Comics in Minneapolis. This week, his phone hasn’t stopped ringing.
Ketter said his store has seen a surge of online orders and messages of support after a photo of him at a recent protest circulated widely on social media. The image appears to show Ketter moving through a cloud of tear gas during a demonstration following the killing of Alex Pretti, which happened just minutes away from his store.
Ketter said he went to the protest after learning about Pretti’s death.
Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus president analyzes fatal shooting of Alex Pretti
There are several angles of the deadly shooting of Alex Pretti online.
Pretti, a 37-year-old nurse who was killed in Minneapolis on Saturday, had a permit to carry. WCCO talked with Rob Doar, a firearms instructor and president of the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus, about the incident.
The audience cheered as the man was pinned down and his arms were tied behind his back. In video of the incident, someone in the crowd can be heard saying, “Oh my god, he sprayed something on her.”
Just before that Omar had called for the abolishment of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and for Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to resign or face impeachment. Calls are mounting on Capitol Hill for Noem to step down after the shooting deaths in Minneapolis of two people who protested deportations. Few Republicans have risen to her defense.
“ICE cannot be reformed,” Omar said, seconds before the attack.
Minneapolis police said officers saw the man use a syringe to spray an unknown liquid at Omar. They immediately arrested him and booked him at the county jail for third-degree assault, spokesperson Trevor Folke said. Forensic scientists responded to the scene.
Police identified the man as 55-year-old Anthony Kazmierczak. It was not immediately clear if Kazmierczak had an attorney. The county public defenders’ office could not immediately be reached.
Anthony James Kazmierczak (Hennepin County Jail )
Omar continued the town hall for about 25 more minutes after the man was ushered out by security, saying she would not be intimidated.
There was a strong, vinegarlike smell after the man pushed on the syringe, according to an Associated Press journalist who was there. Photos of the device, which fell to the ground when he was tackled, showed what appeared to be a light-brown liquid inside. There was no immediate word from officials on what it was.
Minneapolis Council Member LaTrisha Vetaw said some of the substance came into contact with her and State Sen. Bobby Joe Champion as well. She called it a deeply unsettling experience.
No one in the crowd of about 100 people had a noticeable physical reaction to the substance.
The syringe an individual used to spray an unknown substance at Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) during a town hall meeting at the Urban League Twin Cities facility on Jan. 27, 2026, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Omar says she is OK and ‘a survivor’
Walking out afterward, Omar said she felt a little flustered but was not hurt. She was going to be screened by a medical team.
She later posted on the social platform X: “I’m ok. I’m a survivor so this small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work. I don’t let bullies win. Grateful to my incredible constituents who rallied behind me. Minnesota strong.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment Tuesday night.
During a Cabinet meeting in December, he called her “garbage” and added that “her friends are garbage.”
Hours earlier on Tuesday, the president criticized Omar as he spoke to a crowd in Iowa, saying his administration would only let in immigrants who “can show that they love our country.”
“They have to be proud, not like Ilhan Omar,” he said, drawing loud boos at the mention of her name.
He added: “She comes from a country that’s a disaster. So probably, it’s considered, I think — it’s not even a country.”
Omar is a U.S. citizen who fled her birthplace, Somalia, with her family at age 8 as a civil war tore apart the country.
The Minneapolis-St. Paul area is home to about 84,000 people of Somali descent — nearly a third of Somalis living in the U.S.
Officials condemn the attack
Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz expressed gratitude that Omar was safe, adding in a post on X: “Our state has been shattered by political violence in the last year. The cruel, inflammatory, dehumanizing rhetoric by our nation’s leaders needs to stop immediately.”
U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, a South Carolina Republican, also denounced the assault.
“I am deeply disturbed to learn that Rep. Ilhan Omar was attacked at a town hall today” Mace said via X. “Regardless of how vehemently I disagree with her rhetoric — and I do — no elected official should face physical attacks. This is not who we are.”
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, a Democrat, called the attack “unacceptable.” He said he was relieved that Omar “is OK” and thanked police for their quick response, concluding: “This kind of behavior will not be tolerated in our city.”
The city has been reeling from the fatal shootings of two residents by federal immigration agents this month during Trump’s massive immigration enforcement surge. Intensive care unit nurse Alex Pretti was killed Saturday, less than three weeks after Renee Good was fatally shot behind the wheel of her vehicle.
Lawmakers face rising threats
The attack came days after a man was arrested in Utah for allegedly punching U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost, a Democrat from Florida, in the face during the Sundance Film Festival and saying Trump was going to deport him.
Threats against members of Congress have increased in recent years, peaking in 2021 and the aftermath of that year’s Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, before dipping slightly only to climb again, according to the most recent figures from the U.S. Capitol Police.
Lawmakers have discussed the chill the threats bring on their ability to hold town halls and public events, with some even citing the threat environment in their decisions not to seek reelection.
Omar has faced the most particular concern, long targeted with harsh language and personal attacks by Trump and other Republicans.
Following the assault on Omar, U.S. Capitol Police said in a statement that the agency was “working with our federal partners to see this man faces the most serious charges possible to deter this kind of violence in our society.”
It also released updated numbers detailing threats to members of Congress: 14,938 “concerning statements, behaviors, and communications directed against lawmakers, their families, staff and the Capitol Complex.”
That is a sharp increase from 2024, when the number of cases was 9,474, according to USCP. It is the third year in a row that the number of threats has increased.
Capitol Police have beefed up security measures across all fronts since the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and the department has seen increased reporting after a new center was launched two years ago to receive and process reports of threats.
Schoenbaum reported from Salt Lake City. Associated Press writers Audrey McAvoy in Honolulu, Mike Balsamo, Lisa Mascaro and Michelle Price in Washington, and Farnoush Amiri in New York contributed.
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Laura Bargfeld and Hannah Schoenbaum | The Associated Press
The Mayor of Milan, Giuseppe Sala, spoke out Tuesday amid reports that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents would have a security role during the upcoming Winter Olympic Games, which are set to begin in Milan on Feb. 6.
“This is a militia that kills,” Sala said in an interview with Italian media. “It’s a militia that enters people’s homes by signing permits for themselves … It’s clear that they’re not welcome in Milan, there’s no doubt about that.”
“At the Olympics, ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) is supporting the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service and host nation to vet and mitigate risks from transnational criminal organizations. All security operations remain under Italian authority,” ICE said in a statement to the French news agency AFP.
People walk under Olympic illuminations representing winter sports, near Piazza Duomo, ahead of the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Games, in Milan, Italy, Jan. 26, 2026.
Piero CRUCIATTI/AFP/Getty
Sources at the U.S. Embassy in Rome told the AP that ICE would support U.S. diplomatic security details during the Olympics, but that it would not run any immigration enforcement operations in Milan.
A spokesperson at the U.S. embassy would neither confirm nor deny the reports to CBS News on Tuesday.
Despite his disapproval, Sala wondered aloud during the interview with Italy’s RTL Radio 102: “Could we ever say no to Trump?”
“I believe they shouldn’t come to Italy, because they don’t guarantee they’re aligned with our democratic security management methods,” Sala said. “We can take care of their security ourselves. We don’t need ICE.”
Milan Mayor Giuseppe Sala attends the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics cauldron lighting, in front of the Quirinale Presidential Palace, in Rome, Dec. 5, 2025.
Gregorio Borgia/AP
The reports of ICE’s planned role in U.S. security operations during the upcoming Winter Olympic Games came after Italian state television aired video on Sunday of ICE agents threatening to break the windows of a vehicle carrying a state TV crew as they reported on the events in Minneapolis, the AP reported.
The fatal shooting of Alex Pretti by Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis over the weekend, less than three weeks after Renee Good, another Minneapolis resident and U.S. citizen, was shot and killed by an ICE officer, have put the city at the center of America’s dispute over immigration enforcement and the tactics of its federal agencies.
Police in Minnesota began arresting anti-ICE agitators outside a hotel Monday after authorities said the demonstration escalated and was “no longer considered peaceful,” prompting officers to declare an unlawful assembly.
The demonstrators were outside the SpringHill Suites by Marriott in Maple Grove, Minnesota, where they believed U.S. Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino was staying.
President Donald Trump announced Bovino and many of his agents would be leaving Minneapolis as part of a reshuffling of leadership in carrying out his immigration crackdown amid bipartisan scrutiny over the immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis that intensified after agents killed an American recording Border Patrol activity over the weekend.
Border Czar Tom Homan is expected to now lead the effort in the state.
Demonstrators stand against law enforcement officers during a protest outside SpringHill Suites and Residence Inn by Marriott hotels on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026, in Maple Grove, Minnesota.(AP)
Maple Grove police said officers responded on Monday to reports of a protest at the hotel and that the protest escalated when agitators allegedly began throwing objects at officers and damaging property.
After police declared an unlawful assembly and issued a dispersal order, several people who refused to leave were arrested, authorities said.
“The Maple Grove Police Department respects and upholds the First Amendment rights of individuals to peacefully assemble and express their views. Our priority remains the safety and security of all residents, visitors, and property within our community,” a spokesperson for the police department said in a statement to KSTP.
“At that point, the activity was no longer considered peaceful. Individuals participating in criminal acts are not protected under the First Amendment and were subject to arrest,” the spokesperson added.
Maple Grove police officers stand during a protest outside SpringHill Suites and Residence Inn by Marriott hotels on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026, in Maple Grove, Minnesota.(AP)
The Minnesota State Patrol, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office and Hennepin Public Order Group all responded to the scene to assist Maple Grove officers.
The move to pull Bovino from Minneapolis came after he had faced backlash over his unsubstantiated claims that Alex Pretti, the 37-year-old U.S. citizen killed by Border Patrol agents, intended to “massacre” law enforcement, a characterization the White House has distanced the president from.
Pretti was shot and killed on Saturday by Border Patrol agents while recording federal immigration operations in Minneapolis. An ICU nurse, Pretti appeared to be attempting to attend to a woman agents knocked down when he was sprayed with an irritant, pushed to the ground and beaten.An agent was seen pulling Pretti’s gun from his waistband before other agents fired several shots and killed him.
Some reports stated Bovino was removed from his role as Border Patrol “commander-at-large” and will return to his former job as chief patrol agent in El Centro, California, but Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said he has “NOT been relieved of his duties” and remains a “key part of the President’s team.”
Law enforcement officers stand during a protest outside SpringHill Suites and Residence Inn by Marriott hotels on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026, in Maple Grove, Minnesota.(AP)
Bovino also reportedly had access to his social media accounts stripped over his public comments.
The White House also sought to distance itself from comments by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who called Pretti a “domestic terrorist,” and Homeland Security Advisor Stephen Miller, who labeled the man as a “would-be assassin,” with White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt saying she has “not heard the president characterize” Pretti that way.
The shooting of Pretti followed recent unrest over the ICE-involved killing of Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis earlier this month.
Here’s the latest data about permit-to-carry holders from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
As of Monday, there are 378,868 people with an active permit to carry in the state. In 2025, there were 73,846 permits issued. That’s an increase compared to recent years, but far from the back-to-back record-breaking years in 2020 and 2021.
Permits issued by year in Minnesota:
2025: 73,846
2024: 57,248
2023: 65,215
2022: 65,257
2021: 106,488
2020: 96,554
Many more people have firearms at home for hunting and protection in Minnesota, but that type of ownership doesn’t require a permit.
Anyone wanting a permit to carry must:
Be at least 18 years old.
Complete an application form.
Pass a federal and state background check.
Pass a permit-to-carry course, including a live shooting exercise.
Be a resident of the county from which you are requesting a permit if you reside in Minnesota. Nonresidents may apply to any Minnesota county sheriff’s office.
Pay up to a $100 fee.
In the permit-to-carry course, students learn where they can and can’t carry their firearm. Generally, public spaces and common areas of public buildings are allowed.
But there are exceptions. Rob Doar, senior vice president of the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus, explains them.
“K through 12 schools and daycare centers, you need permission of the principal or the owner or daycare center in order to carry there. You can’t carry in jail facilities or state hospitals. And then you can’t carry in courthouse complexes unless you’ve notified the sheriff,” Doar said, adding most courtrooms and court facilities are covered by a court order banning firearms.
Federal agents on Saturday in Minneapolis fatally shot Alex Prett, who Minnesota officials say had a permit to carry. In reference to this incident, FBI Director Kash Patel claimed it is illegal to carry a gun at a protest.
“You cannot bring a firearm, loaded, with multiple magazines, to any sort of protest that you want. It’s that simple. You don’t have that right to break the law and incite violence,” Patel said in an appearance on Fox News the day after federal agents killed Pretti.
Doar disagrees, saying that permit-to-carry holders have every right to carry a firearm at a protest.
“There’s no prohibition in Minnesota statute that says you can’t carry a firearm at a protest,” he said.
WCCO has seen on many occasions permit-to-carry holders with long guns actively demonstrating for gun rights at the Minnesota State Capitol.
When a permit-to-carry holder interacts with law enforcement, they don’t have to declare that they’re carrying a gun unless law enforcement asks if they’re carrying, Doar said. If they’re asked, the holder must answer truthfully.
The answer is no, unless law enforcement asks if they’re carrying, then they must answer truthfully.
“But until they’re asked, you’re under no obligation to inform a peace officer. Interesting though is the statute uses the term ‘peace officer’, which, as defined in Minnesota statutes, doesn’t include federal agents,” said Doar.
Federal officials said that Pretti did not have any identification on him.
Permit-to-carry holders must have some form of ID when carrying their gun, along with their permit. If not, it’s a petty misdemeanor with a $25 fine.
To learn more about Minnesota’s permit-to-carry law, click here.
Prominent Republicans and gun rights advocates helped elicit a White House turnabout this week after bristling over the administration’s characterization of Alex Pretti, the second U.S. citizen and protester killed this month by a federal officer in Minneapolis, as responsible for his own death because he lawfully possessed a weapon.
The death produced no clear shifts in U.S. gun politics or policies, even as President Donald Trump shuffles the lieutenants in charge of his militarized immigration crackdown. But important voices in Trump’s coalition have called for a thorough investigation of Pretti’s death while also criticizing inconsistencies in some Republicans’ Second Amendment stances.
If the dynamic persists, it could give Republicans problems as Trump heads into a midterm election year with voters already growing skeptical of his overall immigration approach. The concern is acute enough that Trump’s top spokeswoman sought Monday to reassert his brand as a staunch gun rights supporter.
“The president supports the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding American citizens, absolutely,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters.
Leavitt qualified that “when you are bearing arms and confronted by law enforcement, you are raising … the risk of force being used against you.”
Videos contradict early statements from administration
That still marked a retreat from the administration’s previous messages about the shooting of Pretti. It came the same day the president dispatched border czar Tom Homan to Minnesota, seemingly elevating him over Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Border Patrol chief Greg Bovino, who had been in charge in Minneapolis.
Within hours of Pretti’s death on Saturday, Bovino suggested Pretti “wanted to … massacre law enforcement,” and Noem said Pretti was “brandishing” a weapon and acted “violently” toward officers.
“I don’t know of any peaceful protester that shows up with a gun and ammunition rather than a sign,” Noem said.
White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, an architect of Trump’s mass deportation effort, went further on X, declaring Pretti “an assassin.”
Bystander videos contradicted each claim, instead showing Pretti holding a cellphone and helping a woman who had been pepper sprayed by a federal officer. Within seconds, Pretti was sprayed, too, and taken to the ground by multiple officers. No video disclosed thus far has shown him unholstering his concealed weapon -– which he had a Minnesota permit to carry. It appeared that one officer took Pretti’s gun and walked away with it just before shots began.
As multiple videos went viral online and on television, Vice President JD Vance reposted Miller’s assessment, while Trump shared an alleged photo of “the gunman’s gun, loaded (with two additional full magazines!).”
Swift reactions from gun rights advocates
The National Rifle Association, which has backed Trump three times, released a statement that began by casting blame on Minnesota Democrats it accused of stoking protests. But the group lashed out after a federal prosecutor in California said on X that, “If you approach law enforcement with a gun, there is a high likelihood they will be legally justified in shooting you.”
That analysis, the NRA said, is “dangerous and wrong.”
FBI Director Kash Patel magnified the blowback Sunday on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures With Maria Bartiromo.” No one, Patel said, can “bring a firearm, loaded, with multiple magazines to any sort of protest that you want. It’s that simple.”
Erich Pratt, vice president of Gun Owners of America, was incredulous.
“I have attended protest rallies while armed, and no one got injured,” he said on CNN.
Conservative officials around the country made the same connection between the First and Second amendments.
“Showing up at a protest is very American. Showing up with a weapon is very American,” state Rep. Jeremy Faison, who leads the GOP caucus in Tennessee, said on X.
Trump’s first-term vice president, Mike Pence, called for “full and transparent investigation of this officer involved shooting.”
A different response from the past
Liberals, conservatives and nonpartisan experts noted how the administration’s response differed from past conservative positions involving protests and weapons.
Multiple Trump supporters were found to have weapons during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Trump issued blanket pardons to all of them.
Republicans were critical in 2020 when Mark and Patricia McCloskey had to pay fines after pointing guns at protesters who marched through their St. Louis neighborhood after the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. And then there’s Kyle Rittenhouse, a counter-protester acquitted after fatally shooting two men and injuring another in Kenosha, Wisconsin, during the post-Floyd protests.
“You remember Kyle Rittenhouse and how he was made a hero on the right,” Trey Gowdy, a Republican former congressman and attorney for Trump during one of his first-term impeachments. “Alex Pretti’s firearm was being lawfully carried. … He never brandished it.”
Adam Winkler, a UCLA law professor who has studied the history of the gun debate, said the fallout “shows how tribal we’ve become.” Republicans spent years talking about the Second Amendment as a means to fight government tyranny, he said.
“The moment someone who’s thought to be from the left, they abandon that principled stance,” Winkler said.
Meanwhile, Democrats who have criticized open and concealed carry laws for years, Winkler added, are not amplifying that position after Pretti’s death.
Uncertain effects in an election year
The blowback against the administration from core Trump supporters comes as Republicans are trying to protect their threadbare majority in the U.S. House and face several competitive Senate races.
Perhaps reflecting the stakes, GOP staff and campaign aides were reticent Monday to talk about the issue at all.
The House Republican campaign chairman, Rep. Richard Hudson of North Carolina, is sponsoring the GOP’s most significant gun legislation of this congressional term, a proposal to make state concealed-carry permits reciprocal across all states.
The bill cleared the House Judiciary Committee last fall. Asked Monday whether Pretti’s death and the Minneapolis protests might affect debate, an aide to Speaker Mike Johnson did not offer any update on the bill’s prospects.
Gun rights advocates have notched many legislative victories in Republican-controlled statehouses in recent decades, from rolling back gun-free zones around schools and churches to expanding gun possession rights in schools, on university campuses and in other public spaces.
William Sack, legal director of the Second Amendment Foundation, said he was surprised and disappointed by the administration’s initial statements following the Pretti shooting. Trump’s vacillating, he said, is “very likely to cost them dearly with the core of a constituency they count on.”
Associated Press writer Kimberlee Kruesi in Providence, Rhode Island, contributed to this report.
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
The fatal shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti by Border Patrol agents on Saturday has further escalated tensions in Minneapolis, a city now at the center of America’s heated battle over immigration enforcement.
Pretti’s killing occurred less than three weeks after Renee Good, another Minneapolis resident and U.S. citizen, was shot and killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer.
A total of 3,000 ICE and Customs and Border Protection agents are now operating in the city, a force that is roughly five times the size of the Minneapolis Police Department, which has about 600 officers. A top ICE official said Sunday that federal agents had carried out roughly 3,400 arrests in the area, though he did not say how many arrestees had criminal records.
Here’s a look at how the Trump administration’s crackdown in Minneapolis has unfolded, and the major events that have placed the Midwestern city in the national and global spotlight.
Dec. 1: ICE launches crackdown in Minneapolis area
ICE launched “Operation Metro Surge” in the Minneapolis area in the first week of December, the latest in a string of Trump administration immigration crackdowns targeting Democratic communities. CBS News reported at the time that ICE planned to target, in part, those with deportation orders, including Somali immigrants, a population President Trump has harshly criticized.
Minnesota had drawn nationwide attention due to a litany of fraud schemes that allegedly bilked billions of dollars from the state’s federally funded public assistance programs. Mr. Trump attacked state officials over the fraud scandals — and zeroed in on the fact that most of the dozens charged in the schemes were of Somali descent.
The state has the nation’s largest Somali American population, the vast majority of them U.S. citizens, either by birth or through naturalization, according to census data.
Dec. 26: Viral video alleges fraud in Minnesota day cares
In a now-viral YouTube video posted the day after Christmas, conservative influencer Nick Shirley visited nearly a dozen day care facilities in the Minneapolis area that he alleged were receiving taxpayer money but not providing any services. The video, which has racked up nearly 4 million views on YouTube, was amplified by Vice President JD Vance and Attorney General Pam Bondi.
State investigators later visited several of the day care centers highlighted in his video, and said nine of them were “operating as expected.” Eight of the facilities had children present during the inspection, and a ninth was not yet open for the day, the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth and Families said. One of the centers closed in early January.
Dec. 29: ICE dispatches agents to visit Minneapolis-area businesses
Days after the Shirley video was posted, agents from ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations branch were dispatched to conduct site visits to several dozen Minneapolis businesses. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said they were overseeing a “massive investigation on childcare and other rampant fraud.”
Jan. 5: Thousands of additional federal agents are deployed
Roughly a week after the Shirley video, CBS News first reported that the Trump administration would be deploying an additional 2,000 federal immigration agents to the Twin Cities. The Department of Homeland Security subsequently called the deployment the largest operation in its history.
Federal agents stand guard as protestors gather outside the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on Jan. 8, 2026.
Octavio JONES /AFP via Getty Images
The reinforcements included Border Patrol agents, including commander Gregory Bovino, who had previously led sweeping and controversial immigration enforcement operations in Charlotte, Chicago and Los Angeles.
Videos of the incident appear to show Good’s car was approached by multiple ICE officers, one of whom stepped in front of her vehicle. Good backed up, turned her wheel and began to drive her car forward, and the officer in front of the SUV, identified as Jonathan Ross, fired multiple shots.
Renee Good is seen in an image from cellphone video recorded by an ICE officer shortly before the shooting that killed her on Jan. 7, 2026.
Mr. Trump and members of his administration accused Good of intentionally hitting and trying to run over the agent, in what Noem described as an “act of domestic terrorism” that left the officer injured. Lawyers representing Good’s family have said Good and her partner were observing ICE operations. Analysis of video from the scene suggested Good may have been trying to steer away from the officers, not towards them.
Hours later, Mayor Jacob Frey sharply criticized ICE, telling the agency: “Get the f*** out of Minneapolis.”
Jan. 13: Prosecutors resign as they face pressure over Renee Good investigation
At least six career prosecutors in the Minneapolis U.S. Attorney’s Office resigned, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson, as the office faced pressure to treat the investigation of Renee Good’s shooting as a case of assault on a federal officer as opposed to a civil rights case. At least six Justice Department prosecutors, most of them supervisors in the Civil Rights Division, said they were leaving the department soon after they learned there would not be a civil rights investigation into Good’s shooting.
An FBI supervisor in the Minneapolis field office’s public corruption squad later resigned, too, partly over pressure to “discontinue” the investigation of Good’s shooting, a source told CBS News.
Separately, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension withdrew from a probe into the shooting, saying the Justice Department had blocked state investigators from accessing evidence.
Jan. 15: ICE officer shoots man in leg during alleged shovel attack
Exactly a week after the killing of Good, DHS said another ICE officer shot a Venezuelan migrant he was trying to arrest in Minneapolis. The department said the migrant and two other Venezuelan men attacked the ICE officer with a snow shovel and broom handle. The officer, DHS said, shot the original target of the operation in the leg following a confrontation.
The Venezuelan man suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was later charged by the Justice Department and accused of assaulting the ICE officer, alongside another migrant involved in the altercation.
Jan. 15: Trump threatens to use Insurrection Act in Minneapolis
As protests over the immigration operations continued to flare, President Trump threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act if state officials didn’t “stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E.”
If the president decides to invoke the law, it could set the stage for the military to be deployed onto the streets of Minneapolis over the objections of state and local officials.
Later that week, some 1,500 active-duty soldiers in Alaska were placed on standby for a possible deployment to Minnesota, a defense official told CBS News.
Meanwhile, the Justice Department has weighed working with the Pentagon on a smaller scale in Minnesota, calling for military lawyers and forensic accountants to assist with fraud investigations in the state.
Jan. 16: Judge blocks agents from arresting or using pepper spray on peaceful protesters
A federal judge blocked DHS agents from arresting or using pepper spray and nonlethal munitions on peaceful protesters in Minnesota, after a lawsuit alleged federal agents “violently subdued” demonstrations against immigration enforcement.
Border Patrol agents deploy tear gas as they clash with people in a residential neighborhood on Jan. 12, 2026 in Minneapolis.
Scott Olson / Getty Images
The government has denied using excessively heavy-handed tactics, with Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security Tricia McLaughlin saying the agency “is taking appropriate and constitutional measures to uphold the rule of law and protect our officers and the public from dangerous rioters.”
Jan. 16: Justice Department probes Frey, Walz and other Minnesota officials over alleged obstruction of immigration agents
On Jan. 16, CBS News disclosed a Justice Department investigation into allegations that Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and other local officials had conspired to impede federal immigration agents.
Walz and Frey denounced the probe, calling it political intimidation.
A week later, the Justice Department subpoenaed the offices of Walz, Frey and other top state and local officials, including Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison.
Jan. 18: Anti-ICE protesters disrupt church service, triggering Justice Department crackdown
A group of protesters angry over ICE’s presence in Minnesota entered a church in St. Paul on Jan. 18, disrupting a Sunday service. The protesters said they focused on Cities Church because a man listed as pastor at the church also appeared to work for ICE.
The protest, which prompted families with children and other congregants to leave the church, was widely condemned by conservatives and the Trump administration, which quickly vowed to launch a criminal investigation. The Justice Department also said it would bring charges against former CNN anchor Don Lemon, who was present in the church at the time. Lemon said he was reporting on the protest.
Three people were arrested on federal charges several days after the protest, but a federal magistrate judge refused to sign arrest warrants for five other people, including Lemon, sources told CBS News. Federal prosecutors asked an appeals court to order the lower court to issue the remaining arrest warrants, but a panel of appellate judges declined that request.
Jan. 18: U.S. citizen detained by ICE at gunpoint
Immigration agents forced their way into a house in St. Paul, Minnesota, and detained ChongLy “Scott” Thao — a Hmong American and U.S. citizen — at gunpoint without a warrant, The Associated Press reported.
Images of 56-year-old Thao being led out of his home in handcuffs, wearing only underwear, Crocs and a blanket draped over his shoulders in the snow, provoked anger toward ICE and renewed questions about the agency’s tactics. Thao was later released.
Image taken from video obtained by Reuters shows ChongLy “Scott” Thao being led from his home in St. Paul, Minnesota, by immigration agents on Jan. 18, 2026.. Thao, a U.S. citizen, was later released.
Reuters
DHS described the incident at Thao’s home as a “targeted operation” seeking two convicted sex offenders who it said lived at the same address, and alleged Thao matched the description of the suspect. Thao’s family has strongly disputed the claim that the suspects lived there.
A day later, two whistleblowers revealed ICE had quietly issued a memo in May 2025 authorizing its officers to forcibly enter people’s homes, without a judicial warrant, during operations targeting those with deportation orders. The directive marked a seismic shift from longstanding rules meant to comply with the Fourth Amendment, which has long been interpreted to mean law enforcement can’t enter private property without a judge’s warrant.
Jan. 20: ICE takes 5-year-old boy into custody with his father
On Jan. 20, a team of ICE officers in Minneapolis took into custody a man from Ecuador and his 5-year-old son, Liam Conejo Ramos. Videos and photos of the incident — depicting Liam wearing a blue bunny hat and his school backpack — garnered national attention, triggering questions about who the Trump administration was targeting in its mass deportation effort.
Liam Conejo Ramos, 5, is detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers after arriving home from preschool no Jan. 20, 2026, in a Minneapolis suburb.
Ali Daniels / AP
Dueling narratives of the incident quickly materialized. Federal officials said ICE targeted the man’s father — not Liam — and accused him of being in the U.S. illegally. According to their version of events, Liam’s father tried to flee ICE and abandoned Liam in a car in the process. After arresting the father, the agency said ICE officers attempted to get Liam’s mother to take him but she refused to do so.
People who have spoken to the mother said she was scared to open the door to ICE, fearing she too would get arrested. Advocates and school officials accused ICE of trying to use Liam as bait — a claim ICE has denied.
Liam and his father are currently being held at a family detention center overseen by ICE in Texas. CBS News reported they have pending immigration cases and can’t be legally deported for now.
Jan. 24: Alex Pretti fatally shot by Border Patrol agents
Just weeks after Renee Good’s shooting, a second person was shot and killed by immigration agents: Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen who worked as an ICU nurse.
Videos of the incident show Pretti standing in the middle of a Minneapolis street holding up his phone toward immigration agents. After he and several others were pushed back, he was wrestled to the ground by a group of agents and appeared to struggle as they tried to bring his arms behind his back. He was then shot multiple times.
A screengrab from a video obtained by Reuters shows a federal officer pinning down a man, identified as Alex Pretti, before he was fatally shot in Minneapolis on Jan. 24, 2026.
VIDEO OBTAINED BY REUTERS
Noem alleged that Pretti “approached” officers with a handgun and “reacted violently” when officers tried to disarm him, forcing the agent to fire “defensive shots.” Videos reviewed by CBS News do not show Pretti with a gun in his hand before the shooting, and one video from immediately beforehand, when officers were struggling with Pretti, appears to show an agent reaching into the scrum empty-handed and emerging with a gun. Local police officials have said Pretti was a lawful gun owner with a permit to carry.
The Trump administration has defended the officer, with Bovino accusing Pretti, without citing evidence,of trying to “massacre law enforcement” during an operation to pursue a man who was in the country illegally and wanted for domestic assault. Local politicians have condemned the shooting, with Walz calling it “sickening.”
“These tactics are very obviously not safe, and it is generating a lot of outrage and fear in the community,” Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara told “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” adding that even if an investigation ultimately finds the shooting was lawful, it may not matter “because there is so much outrage and concern around what is happening in the city.”
In sub-zero temperatures, marchers protest the federal surge in immigration enforcement operations in downtown Minneapolis on Jan. 23, 2026.
Alex Kormann/The Minnesota Star Tribune via Getty Images
Jan. 24: Bondi makes three demands to “bring back law and order”
In a three-page letter, Bondi pressed Walz to let the federal government review Minnesota’s voter rolls and welfare data, and to give ICE greater access to jails in the state.
“I am confident that these simple steps will help bring back law and order to Minnesota and improve the lives of Americans,” Bondi wrote in her letter to the governor Saturday, which accused state officials of “anti-law enforcement rhetoric” and “putting federal agents in danger.”
Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon rejected the request, calling it “an outrageous attempt to coerce Minnesota into giving the federal government private data on millions of U.S. Citizens in violation of state and federal law.”
The Trump administration has long pushed authorities in Minnesota to cooperate more extensively with ICE’s requests to detain people and to let federal agents go into detention facilities. State corrections officials say they already cooperate with ICE, but cooperation varies at the county level.
In a Truth Social post a day later, Mr. Trump also called on local law enforcement to assist ICE, urging Walz, Frey and Democratic officials nationwide to “formally cooperate with the Trump Administration to enforce our Nation’s Laws, rather than resist and stoke the flames of Division, Chaos, and Violence.”
Jan. 25: Minneapolis police chief says, “This is not sustainable”
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said “people have had enough” and urged leaders to “come together and figure this out.”
“This is the third shooting now in less than three weeks,” he said in an interview on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan.” “The Minneapolis Police Department went the entire year last year, recovering about 900 guns from the street, arresting hundreds and hundreds of violent offenders, and we didn’t shoot anyone. And now this is the second American citizen that’s been killed, it’s the third shooting within three weeks.”
“This is not sustainable” for the city’s 600 officers, O’Hara said. “This is taking an enormous toll trying to manage all of this chaos on top of having to be the police department for a major city. It’s too much.”
Jan. 26: Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino, some agents to leave Minneapolis, sources say
Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino and some of his green-uniformed agents are expected to soon leave the Minneapolis area, sources familiar with the move tell CBS News.
One of the sources said Bovino was relieved of his command in Minneapolis and is expected to return to California’s El Centro sector, where he served as the chief agent before the Trump administration deployed him to major American cities, including Los Angeles and Chicago.
The development follows intense backlash over how top federal officials, including Bovino, responded to the Pretti’s shooting. Bovino, citing no evidence, suggested over the weekend that Pretti intended to “massacre” federal agents. Some of the claims by Bovino and other officials were contradicted by witnesses and video from the scene.
News of Bovino’s impending departure came hours after President Trump said Tom Homan, the White House border czar, would be heading to Minnesota.
With throngs of people in Minnesota protesting the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement surge, President Donald Trump and some of his allies repeatedly described the protesters as paid.
“The thugs that are protesting include many highly paid professional agitators and anarchists,” he said Jan. 18 on Truth Social.
“They’re paid agitators and insurrectionists,” Trump said at a Jan. 20 press conference.
The next day in Davos, Switzerland, Trump said the “fake” protests were “done by agitators and professional insurrectionists. … They’re professional troublemakers.”
He added, “We are looking very strong at the money, too, in Minnesota and other places.”
We asked the White House for Trump’s evidence about “paid” protesters and received no response. Although some people on social media have provided what they said is evidence of such activity, we found none of the claims held up to scrutiny.
Yet Trump’s claim has become a talking point among his leaders and supporters. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on CBS “Face the Nation” that Minneapolis is distinct from other cities, where she said officials didn’t see “funded protesters.”
Vice President JD Vance at a Jan. 8 White House press briefing asked, “When somebody throws a brick at an ICE agent or somebody tries to run over an ICE agent, who paid for the brick?” (Bricks are commonly falsely described as evidence of organized, paid protests.)
Interviewed Jan. 13 on CNN’s “The Source” about Renee Good’s fatal shooting by an ICE officer, Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., called for an investigation of “paid protesters, and who’s paying them to obstruct federal officers from doing their job.”
Minnesotans have responded to immigration agents’ presence in their communities for weeks. The protests have been widely covered and there’s no evidence any of it is staged. None of these politicians explained who they believed was underwriting the protests.
Experts told us that the majority of protesters are locals showing their dissent. We found a large volunteer protest movement in the Twin Cities.
Yohuru Williams, a historian and director of the Racial Justice Initiative at Minnesota’s University of St. Thomas, told PolitiFact in an email that “most protesters are residents of the state who are concerned not only about the presence of ICE in the state but also the President’s usurpation of power.”
People participate in a protest and noise demonstration calling for an end to federal immigration enforcement operations in the city, Jan. 9, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP)
How Minnesotans are protesting immigration action
The Twin Cities have a long tradition of community organizing among civic groups and institutions. Labor unions, faith-based groups and immigrant organizations have played roles in resisting the federal immigration operation in Minnesota. Groups have staged high school walkouts, marches and sign-waving demonstrations.
The group Singing Resistance holds peaceful vigils with singing. Volunteers have donated to food drives and delivered groceries to families scared to leave their homes. The Smitten Kitten, a Minnesota shop that sells sex products, has collected food, diapers and other necessities for immigrants staying at home. St. Paul’s Mischief Toy Store distributed free whistles for people to alert others to ICE activity. Restaurants offered special menu items such as “f— ICE cold brew” to raise money for an immigrant rights group.
Jillian Hiscock, owner of the women’s sports-themed A Bar of Their Own, told PolitiFact the protesters are not paid.
“We’ve had folks from literally every walk of life stopping in to make posters and grab whistles — families with small children, bundled up seniors with walking canes that we helped create a necklace for their sign so they wouldn’t have to hold onto anything, and everything in between,” Hiscock said in an email.
Hiscock said she has heard many people who are protesting now say they never took action in the past, and the descriptions of “paid protesters” aim to undermine their voices.
“I truly think it’s a made-up sentiment to try to minimize the groundswell of the movement here on the ground,” Hiscock said.
Neighbors joined Signal chats to alert each other to immigration enforcement actions nearby and take action. The Monarca Movement has held “upstander” trainings to teach people how to record video of immigration agents or how to respond if agents leave behind a child or abandon a car during an arrest.
On Jan. 23, thousands of people marched in downtown Minneapolis in subzero temperatures before rallying at the Target Center. Earlier in the day, about 100 clergy members were arrested in an airport protest. Hundreds of businesses closed Jan. 23 for the “ICE Out of Minnesota Day of Truth and Freedom” event.
Describing the weather that day on air, Minnesota Vikings radio announcer Paul Allen joked about protesters getting “hazard pay.” Three days later, he apologized after backlash, calling it “a cheap one-liner” and “insensitive and poorly timed,” and said he would take a few days off.
Danielle K. Brown, a Michigan State University journalism professor who formerly worked at the University of Minnesota, told PolitiFact in an email, “There is no evidence of philanthropic efforts funding expansive civilian protest efforts.”
Professional community organizers have been involved in the protests, which is normal for all protests, Brown said. Groups with different ideologies routinely speak at such events.
However, “The majority of protesters are still locals who do not get paid to engage in protest and resistance work,” Brown said.
Timothy Zick, a First Amendment expert and William & Mary law professor, said residents of the community were protesting “what they view as lawless misconduct by ICE agents.” He said the Trump administration’s descriptions of paid protesters are “baseless” and aim to diminish and dismiss dissent.
Critics of 2024’s Israel-Gaza campus protests and 2025’s anti-Trump “Hands Off” protests in Washington, D.C., also used the term “outside agitators” or other terms, but our reporting found the claims lackedmerit. Zick previously told PolitiFact the description has been used throughout history to discredit large historical movements, regardless of how peaceful they were.
Attendees hold signs during a rally against federal immigration enforcement at Target Center on Jan. 23, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP)
These videos aren’t evidence protesters are getting paid
Social media users amplified allegations that professional protesters or agitators are in Minnesota to make money. When we reviewed their posts’ evidence, we found they were generated with artificial intelligence or recycled content from years ago.
In one example, an artificial intelligence-generated video shared on TikTok claimed to show conservative influencer Nick Shirley interviewing a protester in Minneapolis, who says he’s jobless but is getting $20 an hour to protest. The video has a watermark for Sora, OpenAI’s video-generating platform. It came from an account which has shared many other AI-generatedvideos.
(Screenshot of TikTok post showing Sora watermark.)
In another example, an X post shared photos of documents it said were contract paperwork for paid protesters. “This is 100% proof that NONE of the Democrat protests are organic,” the Jan. 20 post said. “They can all be IGNORED because they are FAKE.”
The same images were shared in previous years, including in a 2018 blog post claiming to show proof that protesters were paid to plan the 2015 Baltimore riots; in 2020 to claim people protesting George Floyd’s murder were following a manual; and in 2024 by Shirley to falsely claim paid protesters were marching outside of the Democratic National Convention to demand a ceasefire in Gaza.
(Screenshot of page of a fake contract for paid protesters.)
One Fox News video was shared widely as if it showed one protester’s admission she had been paid. In it, Fox News host Laura Ingraham stood in the streets of Minneapolis questioning a protester who was shouting, “Shame! Shame! Shame!” in front of the camera. “Do you have a job?” Ingraham asked the woman, whose face was partially covered by a scarf. “I’m getting paid right now,” the protester answered. Ingraham flashed a thumbs up to the camera. PolitiFact couldn’t confirm the protester’s identity or motives and we found no further reporting on the incident.
Our ruling
Trump said protesters against the federal immigration crackdown in Minnesota are conducting “fake protests done by agitators and professional insurrectionists. …They’re professional troublemakers.”
Minnesotans have been protesting immigration agents in their communities for weeks. Some professional community organizers are involved in the protests but evidence shows a large volunteer protest movement in the Twin Cities.The accusation that protesters are “paid” is a frequent talking point to dismiss the legitimacy of grassroots activism and criticism of the government.
The social media posts we found that claimed to show evidence of paid protesters were either AI-generated, recycled conspiracy theories or unsubstantiated.
Incoming Target CEO Michael Fiddelke has broken his silence about recent violence in a message to employees on Monday, after a second fatal shooting in the corporation’s home base of Minneapolis over the weekend.
“We’ll have time to talk very soon about our plans to move Target forward, but right now, as someone who is raising a family here in the Twin Cities and as a leader of this hometown company, I want to acknowledge where we are,” Fiddelke said in the video, according to a transcript published by CNBC.
“The violence and loss of life in our community is incredibly painful,” he said. “I know it’s weighing heavily on many of you across the country, as it is with me.”
Fiddelke did not name Alex Pretti, who was killed by a Border Patrol officer on Saturday, or Renee Good, who was killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent on Jan. 7.
He also did not mention President Donald Trump, ICE, or policy changes at Target. The company has been the target of protests across Minnesota after immigration officials detained two Target employees, who are U.S. citizens, during their shift in Richfield.
Clergy members in Minnesota met with outgoing CEO Brian Cornell, urging the company to call for ICE to withdraw from the state and call on Congress to end funding for ICE, according to USA Today. They also demanded that Target stand against unreasonable searches and seizures, and use its influence to ensure that the federal officer who killed Renee Good be prosecuted.
But there was no indication the company would agree to those specific measures in Monday’s message.
“We are doing everything we can to manage what’s in our control, always keeping the safety of our team and guests our top priority,” Fiddelke said.
He starts as CEO on Feb. 1 and currently serves as the company’s chief operating officer. In the video, he said he has been looking forward to starting the new role.
On Sunday, Fiddelke joined more than 60 CEOs in signing an open letter from the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce that said businesses were working behind the scenes with government officials, including Gov. Tim Walz, the White House, Vice President JD Vance, and local mayors.
“With yesterday’s tragic news, we are calling for an immediate deescalation of tensions and for state, local and federal officials to work together to find real solutions,” the letter read.
Read the full transcript of Fiddelke’s video here:
Hi team.
In one week I will officially start as CEO.
We’re about to step into a new chapter for Target, and I’ve been looking forward to starting this work with you for some time, but this isn’t the first message I imagined I’d send.
We’ll have time to talk very soon about our plans to move Target forward, but right now, as someone who is raising a family here in the Twin Cities and as a leader of this hometown company, I want to acknowledge where we are.
The violence and loss of life in our community is incredibly painful.
I know it’s weighing heavily on many of you across the country, as it is with me.
What’s happening affects us not just as a company, but as people, as neighbors, friends and family members within Target.
We are doing everything we can to manage what’s in our control, always keeping the safety of our team and guests our top priority.
During my more than 20 years at Target, one of the things I’ve loved is how we are part of the communities where we operate.
Since the beginning, we’ve given 5% of our profits and millions of volunteer hours to make them strong and vibrant places to live and work.
In line with that, I’ve been meeting with a range of leaders and this weekend added my signature to a statement using our collective voice to call for calm, constructive dialogue and deescalation to reduce tension and keep people safe.
As that work continues, looking ahead to next week, I’ll spend my first days in the field listening and learning alongside our teams, and then we’ll come together for an all-team huddle to talk about how we’re moving our business forward.
Our leadership team is activated, HR is equipped, and our resources remain ready to give you the care and support you need.
Thank you for everything you do for each other, our guests, and our communities.
After federal agents fatally shot Alex Pretti on Jan. 24 in Minneapolis, social media users shared what they said was one agent’s name and photo.
An Instagram post with over 45,000 views included a photo, said it was Evan Kilgore and said he was the person who shot Pretti. “Here’s one of the many murderers out there right now. Justice is coming.”
The name and photo were also shared on Facebook and X, with claims that Kilgore shot Pretti.
(Screenshot from Instagram)
The images match the X profile photo of conservative commentator Evan Kilgore, whose X profile identifies him as an “American Nationalist” with more than 185,000 followers. But Kilgore was not involved in Pretti’s shooting.
The federal agents involved in the shooting have not been publicly identified.
Kilgore has addressed the claims, writing on X that he is “not the individual who shot Alex Pretti yesterday in Minneapolis.”
Kilgore told PolitiFact that he has never been an Immigration and Customs Enforcement or Border Patrol agent, nor has he ever worked with or for any law enforcement agency. He said he was at home in Ohio at the time of the shooting and shared timestamped video footage with PolitiFact as proof.
At 10:38 a.m. Eastern Time, which is 9:38 a.m. CT, Kilgore posted on X about the Ohio weather, sharing a snow forecast. Then, about 15 minutes later, Kilgore posted for the first time about Pretti’s shooting. “BREAKING: There has been another Border Patrol related shooting in Minneapolis near 26th Street & Nicollet Ave. The individual is down,” he wrote.
He posted videos of the shooting and commentary about it throughout the day.
The next day, Kilgore addressed the claims misidentifying him as the shooter, writing, “If you took a single moment to scroll through my public account on X, you would see I’m not even in the same state. You would even see I was making public commentary about the incident and about how much snow I will be getting in another state, yesterday.”
Kilgore said he is considering taking legal action against one person who misidentified him as the shooter. He said he has contacted local law enforcement.
We rate claims that Kilgore is one of the Border Patrol agents who shot Pretti Pants on Fire!
PolitiFact Researcher Caryn Baird and Staff Writer Maria Briceño contributed to this report.
A federal judge said there will be no decision on Monday in Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison’s bid to end to Operation Metro Surge.
The state of Minnesota and the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul are seeking a temporary restraining order in their lawsuit against Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and other Trump administration officials, arguing the influx of thousands of immigration agents to the state has caused “tremendous damage.”
Tricia McLaughlin, U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s assistant secretary, previously called the suit “baseless.”
Judge Kate Menendez, an appointee of former President Joe Biden, said at the end of Monday’s hearing she is going to take the time “to do everything I can to get it right” on whatever final decision she makes.
Menendez was just as skeptical of the rationale of the U.S. Department of Justice and Trump administration for the deployment and the number of federal officers deployed as she was the state’s arguments.
She started off by acknowledging the significance of Monday’s hearing and the weeks-long record of court filings in front of her, but said “most of the complexity … rests on the legal questions” of what Minnesota is asking for in the case and not on the actions of the Trump administration.
Judge Kate Menendez during the hearing in Minneapolis federal court on Jan. 26, 2026.
Cedric Hohnstadt
The plaintiffs’ arguments
Lindsey Middlecamp, an attorney with Ellison’s office, said Minnesota should not have to deal with this “unchecked invasion and occupation” another day, and asked Menendez to issue an immediate restraining order. Middlecamp argued that Operation Metro Surge, which she described as the largest federal deployment of law enforcement in U.S. history, has brought an “unprecedented force of masked agents” who are “racially profiling and inflicting violence” in their wake.
Ellison’s team also underlined the “pervasive and systematic retaliation against legal observers,” including the “indiscriminate use” of chemical irritants.
“They are finding any way they can to find and punish those who speak up against this misconduct,” Middlecamp said. “Harms are accruing every day.”
Menendez was skeptical of exactly what harms the state is alleging and under what past precedent case law can give her guidance to make a decision, and what exactly the solution is in this case.
Minnesota Assistant Attorney General Brian Carter then alleged that DHS “designed” plans to force Minnesota to expend its resources.
“The difficulty with the case law on this situation is that this situation is unprecedented in the 250-year history of this country,” Carter said. “We have never had a federal government amass an army of 3,000 to 4,000 masked federal agents and sent them into a state to essentially stir the pot with conduct that is pervasive and includes widespread and illegal violent conduct.”
Menendez replied that while Minnesotans are in “shockingly unusual times,” she’s unsure if she has the leverage to stop it as a whole. She added that the “defining principle” of the argument is something that she is “struggling with here,” adding that the federal government has tremendous power in immigration enforcement.
Carter said he has seen a “crystallization” of efforts, citing Bondi’s “shakedown” letter.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and his legal team during the hearing in Minneapolis federal court on Jan. 26, 2026.
Cedric Hohnstadt
“‘You need to do these three things, and if you do it, we’ll get these officers off your streets,’” Carter said. “It’s a particularly damaging flavor of extortion.”
Carter cited the 10th Amendment in the Bill of Rights, which states the “powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”
“This administration is not content with the rule of law,” Carter said. “This administration is not content with the courts working this stuff out.”
Carter said instead, the administration is putting “violence on the streets” of Minnesota.
“That has to violate the 10th Amendment,” Carter said.
Menendez said she wants to know the parameters of the ruling if there is one, adding there is “no question” the federal government can enforce immigration laws, but she questioned how she is supposed to be able to delineate between legal response and illegal response by the government.
“I don’t know what the line is,” Menendez said. “Is it the motivation, is it the scope, is it the illegality?”
“That kind of coercion … when Congress legislating that states are required to run background checks, if those violate the 10th Amendment, this has to. It’s beyond debate,” Carter said. “This is so far beyond the pale of legality, this is such an affront on the sovereignty of the state.”
Carter also underlined the unprecedented nature of the Trump administration’s attack on states “based on personal animosity.”
“The president of the United States said, he said, ‘Minnesota, your day of retribution is here.’ That is crazy,” Carter said. “How can that not violate equal sovereignty … If this is the way things go, if this is not stopped, what is going to happen to the next administration?”
Menendez ultimately pushed back on the state’s requests for a temporary restraining order.
“You’re asking me for a TRO. What does it say? What exactly do I do?” Menendez said.
Carter argued that the easiest, most straightforward thing is to end Operation Metro Surge.
“The whole Operation Metro Surge is an illegal means to an illegal ends, so just end it,” Carter said. “End the whole thing, is the appropriate remedy here.”
Menendez replied with a question.
“I can do all that?” she said.
The defense’s arguments
After a brief recess, Menendez asked U.S. Department of Justice attorney Andrew Warden if the explicit goal of Operation Metro Surge was to get Minnesota to change the policies listed out in Bondi’s memo — the contents of which did not sit well with Menendez.
Warden replied that “the goal of the surge is to enforce federal law.” Menendez then pushed again, asking if Minneapolis changed its policies and the state did the same thing, would the surge end?
“I can’t commit to a specific numbers of officers leaving,” Warden said.
Menendez, pushing again, asked: “But it would change? Aside from the fact that policies have been in effect for years, if they changed policies tomorrow, you’d leave?”
“The goal of the surge is to enforce federal law,” Warden said.
Menendez then asked how Bondi’s letter and written statements to the court do not demonstrate that the purpose of the surge is to affect the three changes the U.S. attorney general listed. Warden deflected, adding there was a need for “compensation” to supplement the “vacuum” left by the state and local leaders on immigration enforcement.
“It’s not like you can fix it overnight, let’s say they fix it in a week. If it is true you’re there because those policies had consequences, do you think it’s true that the motivation matters?” Menendez said. “Let’s imagine Bondi said we are here till you change your policies? Does that not violate the anticommandeering principle?”
“If there is a less of a need for federal law enforcement, then our involvement will change,” Warden said, but added it’s “undisputed that federal law enforcement can be here enforcing federal immigration law.”
Menendez then pressed Warden on Mr. Trump’s comments on “retribution.”
“I have not exactly seen that Truth Social recently,” Warden said, referring to posts from the president’s social media platform.
Next, Menendez mentioned Chicago, which had a DHS surge last year, and cited the lower number of federal law enforcement officers who were deployed to a much larger city to deal with potentially a much larger problem. She said there are “vastly more” law enforcement in Minnesota “than was even thought to be necessary in Chicago.”
“Is there a point in which it can no longer be depicted as a rational law enforcement response?” Menendez said.
Warden responded by citing Trump’s Article II powers, and said it would be “difficult to craft a remedy in light of that,” adding that he doesn’t “see how a court can say this amount of officers is the right amount” if requested by DHS.
Menendez said Bondi’s letter “concerns” her in describing the DOJ’s goals, because all three points are already being litigated in federal court in the state.
Brantley Mayers, a U.S. Department of Justice attorney, addresses federal Judge Kate Menendez as Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and his team looks on during the hearing on Jan. 26, 2025, in Minneapolis.
Cedric Hohnstadt
“Is the executive trying to achieve a goal through force that it cannot achieve through courts?” Menendez said.
“No, your honor,” Warden said, adding that “when there’s a vacuum in law enforcement” the federal government has gone in historically. Warden said he “doesn’t see how” operating on one front in Minnesota stops the law enforcement there from enforcing other laws.
Warden and his justice department team finished their arguments by telling Menendez they do not see the grounds for an injunction of any type and that there would be an “administrability problem” with pausing Operation Metro Surge in any respect, adding it would be “very difficult to implement.”
The plaintiffs got the final word before recess on Monday, with Minneapolis city attorney Sarah Lathrop saying relief is needed because it’s “clear that the intense situation on the ground” is not getting better.
“The court in its exercise can say ‘we’re stopping, we’re pausing,’” Lathrop said, adding there’s a chance of proceeding the case over the long term.
“You don’t have to draw the lines now,” Lathrop said.
The plaintiffs asked for Menendez’s order to return the federal law enforcement back to the status quo in the state to Nov. 30, the day before Operation Metro Surge began.
Lathrop said an order needs to come now to “take down the temperature.”
“Not all crises have a fix from a district court injunction,” Menendez said. “There are other things that are supposed to reign in this kind of conduct. It must be that work is being done elsewhere to bring an end to what is described here, not just counting on a single district court writing a single preliminary injunction.”
After federal immigration agents shot and killed Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, social media users shared a screenshot of what appeared to be a Truth Social post, leaving some people confused about an apparent shift in President Donald Trump’s gun control views.
But Trump never shared such a post. It was fabricated.
X,FacebookandThreads users shared on Jan. 24 and 25 images of the supposed Truth Social post and tagged the National Rifle Association’s social media accounts.
“He had a gun, only criminals carry guns on our streets, we need law and order. Thank you for your attention to this matter. President Donald J. Trump,” reads what looks like a screenshot of the Truth Social post.
(Screenshot of a Threads post showing a fabricated Truth Social post.)
A Facebook user shared the screenshot in a Facebook group writing, “Yo, Second Amendment bros. I’m so confused.”
After Pretti was killed, Trump posted a picture and long message on Truth Social, writing, “This is the gunman’s gun, loaded (with two additional full magazines!), and ready to go – What is that all about?”
The NRA issued a “fake news alert” on X advising users not to believe the screenshot of the Truth Social post circulating online.
“As bad actors among us attempt to further divide our country, it is now more important than ever to be vigilant against AI-generated content meant to mislead Americans,” the NRA wrote Jan. 25.
We rate the claim that Trump posted on Truth Social that “only criminals carry guns on our streets” Pants on Fire!
Video footage of the fatal shooting of Minnesota resident Alex Pretti by a federal immigration officer contradicts Trump administration officials’ claims about the event.
Since Pretti’s Jan. 24 killing in Minneapolis, the federal government has provided no evidence to substantiate early statements and shared no details about what happened before the confrontation and in the moments leading to a Border Patrol officer firing his gun.
Pretti, 37, was a U.S. citizen who worked as an Intensive Care Unit nurse at the Minneapolis Veterans Affairs hospital.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Pretti was “brandishing” a handgun and “attacked” officers. Social media videos verified by multiple news organizations show Pretti, who had a concealed carry permit, holding a cell phone as he directed traffic and tried to help a woman pushed to the ground by an officer.
White House senior adviser Stephen Miller called Pretti a “domestic terrorist,” the same term some Trump officials used to describe Renee Nicole Good, a Minneapolis woman killed Jan. 7 by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent.
Noem, Miller and Border Patrol chief Greg Bovino said that because Pretti was carrying a handgun and ammunition, he planned to assassinate law enforcement — statements that incensed some Republicans who support Second Amendment rights.
“The suspect put himself in that situation,” Bovino said. “The victims are the Border Patrol agents there.”
Pretti’s parents called their son a “kindhearted soul” and said Trump officials were not telling the truth. “The sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting,” their Jan. 25 press statement said.
With many questions remaining unanswered, here’s how Trump administration officials’ explanations conflict with available information.
Video does not show Pretti approaching immigration agents with handgun
Noem said Pretti “approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a 9mm semi-automatic handgun.”
Bovino said, “This looks like a situation where an individual wanted to do maximum damage and massacre law enforcement.”
News outlets’ analysis of videos of the incident from several angles do not show Pretti approaching immigration officials with a handgun.
In the footage, Pretti stands between an officer and two civilians. The officer disperses pepper spray at Pretti and the people standing behind him. A still image from bystander video shows Pretti holding up his left arm in reaction.
Several agents tackle Pretti to the ground. One officer appears to remove a gun from Pretti’s hip and walk across the street away from the group. Quickly after another officer fires several shots at Pretti as he is restrained by agents.
“What the videos depict is that this guy did not walk up to anybody from (Customs and Border Protection) in a threatening manner,” former acting DHS undersecretary for intelligence John Cohen told ABC News. “For (DHS) to construe that he arrived at that location with the intent to shoot those border patrol officers, there’s nothing in the video evidence that we’ve seen thus far that would support that.”
CBS News correspondent Margaret Brennan asked Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara if he had seen any evidence that Pretti was “brandishing” a gun, as Noem said.
“You have a Second Amendment right in the United States to possess a firearm. And there are some restrictions around that in Minnesota,” O’Hara said Jan. 25 on “Face the Nation.” “And everything that we see that we are aware of shows that he did not violate any of those restrictions.”
Trump administration officials called Pretti a ‘domestic terrorist’
Miller described Pretti as a “domestic terrorist” who “tried to assassinate federal law enforcement.”
In a press conference after the shooting, Noem said Pretti “came with weapons and ammunition to stop a law enforcement operation of federal law enforcement officers.” She said Pretti “committed an act of domestic terrorism. That’s the facts.”
“When you perpetuate violence against a government because of ideological reasons and for reasons to resist and perpetuate violence, that is the definition of domestic terrorism,” Noem said.
It’s the second time in a month that Noem said a person shot and killed by immigration officers was a domestic terrorist, before any investigation had taken place.
The FBI defines domestic terrorism as acts dangerous to human life that violate federal or state criminal laws and appear intended to intimidate or coerce civilians; influence government policy by intimidation or coercion; or affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination or kidnapping.
Legal experts questioned the characterization of Good as a domestic terrorist, telling PolitiFact the label was prejudicial and an attempt to malign her.
Editor’s note: This story will be updated with additional statements and analysis. Check back later Jan. 26.
Republican Chris Madel says he is ending his campaign for governor of Minnesota, saying that he cannot support the national members of his party and their “retribution on the citizens of our state.”
Madel said he supported the original stated purpose of Operation Metro Surge — to detain the “worst of the worst” migrants who are in the country illegally — but said the operation has “expanded far beyond its stated focus on true public safety threats.”
The operation, Madel said, has been an “unmitigated disaster.”
In his video announcement on X, Madel said it is “wrong” that U.S. citizens of color are living in fear and carrying passports to prove their citizenship status.
“I cannot support the national Republicans stated retribution on the citizens of our state, nor can I count myself a member of a party that would do so,” Madel said.
The second reason for ending his campaign, Madel said, is that national Republicans have “made it nearly impossible for a Republican to win a statewide election in Minnesota.”
Madel also said local Republican leaders have done nothing to investigate fraud in the state, which is the purported reason for Operation Metro Surge and the 3,000 federal agents who have since descended on Minnesota.
Madel originally made headlines in 2024 when he represented a state trooper who was charged with murder after he shot and killed a man during a traffic stop on Interstate 94. The charges against the trooper were eventually dropped.
He has also assisted Jonathan Ross, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who shot and killed Renee Good earlier this month in South Minneapolis.
He defended his decision to help Ross, saying that he believed in the “constitutional right to counsel.”
