Tensions rise as activists confronted at gunpoint by federal agents
Immigration officers, with guns drawn, arrested several activists trailing their vehicles on Tuesday in Minneapolis, indicating that tensions have not subsided since the departure of a high-profile commander last week.
At least one person wearing a garment with an anti-ICE message was handcuffed while lying face-down on the ground. An Associated Press photographer witnessed the arrests.
Meanwhile, Tuesday marked the deadline for the Minnesota governor, state attorney general, and the mayors of Minneapolis and St. Paul to provide documents to a federal grand jury in response to a Justice Department request for records related to any effort to resist the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement. Officials have criticized it as a bullying tactic.
Federal agents in the Twin Cities have recently been carrying out more targeted immigration arrests at homes and neighborhoods, instead of staging in parking lots. Their convoys have been harder to locate and less aggressive. Alerts in activist group chats have focused more on sightings than on immigration-related detentions.
Several cars followed officers through south Minneapolis after reports of them knocking at homes. Officers stopped their vehicles and ordered activists to exit a car at gunpoint. Agents warned reporters at the scene to stay back and threatened to use pepper spray.
There was no immediate response to a request for comment from the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Last month, a federal judge imposed limits on how officers treat motorists following them without obstructing their operations. The judge stated that safely following agents “at an appropriate distance does not, by itself, create reasonable suspicion to justify a vehicle stop.” However, an appeals court set the order aside.
Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino, who was leading an immigration crackdown in Minneapolis and other major U.S. cities, left town last week, shortly after the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti, the second local killing of a U.S. citizen in January.
Trump administration border czar Tom Homan was dispatched to Minnesota instead. He warned that protesters could face consequences if they interfere with officers.
Grand jury seeks communications, records
The office of Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said it was complying with a grand jury subpoena for documents regarding the city’s response to Operation Metro Surge, but provided no further details.
“We have done nothing wrong and have nothing to hide, but when the federal government weaponizes the criminal justice system against political opponents, it’s important to stand up and fight back,” spokesperson Ally Peters said.
Other state and local offices run by Democrats received similar requests. People familiar with the matter have informed the AP that the subpoenas are related to an investigation into whether Minnesota officials obstructed enforcement through public statements.
No bond for man in Omar incident
Elsewhere, a man charged with squirting apple cider vinegar on Democratic U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar will remain in jail. U.S. Magistrate Judge David Schultz upheld a federal prosecutor’s request to deny bond to Anthony Kazmierczak.
“We simply cannot have protesters and people — regardless of their political stance — running up to representatives who are conducting official business, and holding town halls, and assaulting them,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Bejar said Tuesday.
Defense attorney John Fossum argued that the vinegar posed a low risk to Omar. He stated that Kazmierczak’s health issues were not being properly addressed in jail and that his release would be appropriate.
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