DHS blasts NYT's ‘despicably misleading’ coverage of shovel attack on ICE agent in Minneapolis

WASHINGTON, DC: The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Thursday, January 15, slammed The New York Times for how it reported the shooting in Minneapolis involving a federal agent and a Venezuelan immigrant.

DHS claims the media organization purposely left out the fact that the agent was being attacked with a shovel before he fired his weapon.

DHS criticizes The New York Times for omitting key details

The argument started after The New York Times posted an update on social media stating that a federal agent had shot an immigrant in the leg. 

The post and the headline focused on the shooting and not on what had actually happened. The Times wrote, “Breaking News: A federal agent shot an immigrant in the leg in Minneapolis, federal officials said, one week after an ICE officer killed Renee Good in the city.”

DHS quickly fired back, calling the coverage "despicably misleading." The agency stated on X that the headline is "exactly why the American people have completely lost faith in the mainstream media." 

They accused the reporter of having the full story but choosing not to tell it, saying, "This journalist knows the facts, was given the truth, and adamantly refuses to report it."

DHS outlines sequence of events leading to officer-involved shooting

DHS released a detailed statement to explain what they say actually happened during the incident. 

They said officers were trying to stop "an illegal alien from Venezuela who was released into the country by Joe Biden in 2022." According to DHS, the man crashed his car, ran away, and then began "violently" fighting the officer who caught up to him.

The situation allegedly turned into an ambush when two other people joined in. "While the subject and law enforcement were in a struggle on the ground, two subjects came out of a nearby apartment and also attacked the law enforcement officer with a snow shovel and broom handle," DHS explained. 

The agency said the officer fired a "defensive shot" only because he was "fearing for his life and safety as he was being ambushed by three individuals."

The New York Times defends its standards for verification

The New York Times responded to the criticism by explaining that they do not simply repeat what the government says without checking it themselves first. 

On X, the Times replied, "Our reporting on this and other ICE shootings reflects what we can independently verify at the time of publication." 

They further stated, "We publish statements provided by government agencies and officials, but only report these details as facts once we’ve been able to independently verify the claims."