DHS sends 2,000 agents to Minnesota to assist in immigration and fraud investigations

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA: The Trump administration has begun a large-scale deployment of Department of Homeland Security personnel to the Minneapolis-St Paul area, escalating federal immigration enforcement and fraud investigations in Minnesota.

According to multiple law enforcement officials, the operation could involve as many as 2,000 agents over the next month.

The surge marks one of the most significant federal law enforcement concentrations in a US city in recent years. Officials say the deployment will continue for at least 30 days.

DHS launches month-long immigration and fraud enforcement surge 

Federal law enforcement officials told CBS News that hundreds of agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Homeland Security Investigations have been sent to the Twin Cities as part of an expanded immigration crackdown tied to ongoing fraud probes.

The operation is expected to include officers from ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations, which conducts arrests and deportations, as well as investigators from Homeland Security Investigations, DHS’s criminal investigative arm.

Officials familiar with the plan said that the total deployment could reach roughly 2,000 personnel, including up to 600 HSI agents and as many as 1,500 ICE ERO officers rotating through the area over the course of the month.

Tactical Special Response Teams and a layered command structure with dozens of senior supervisors are also expected to be involved.

One former law enforcement official described the deployment as extraordinary, noting that the number of HSI agents being sent to Minneapolis was roughly equivalent to the entire HSI workforce assigned to Arizona.

“This is a massive resource allocation,” the official said, adding that Minneapolis is effectively becoming “the new Chicago,” a reference to past large-scale federal enforcement operations. 

Officials said US Customs and Border Protection Commander Gregory Bovino, who has overseen previous immigration roundups, is expected to arrive in Minnesota to help lead enforcement efforts, alongside an unspecified number of Border Patrol agents.

The surge builds on Operation Metro Surge, an ICE enforcement campaign launched late last year in the Twin Cities. As of December 19, ICE had made nearly 700 arrests as part of that operation, according to DHS.

Federal officials said DHS has increased activity in immigrant-populated neighborhoods in recent weeks, prompting protests, confrontations and heightened fear within local communities, particularly among Minnesota’s large Somali-American population.

Fraud scrutiny intensifies as Tim Walz exits re-election race 

The federal enforcement surge comes amid heightened scrutiny of Minnesota following years of high-profile fraud cases involving federally funded programs.

Federal prosecutors have charged more than 90 people in Minnesota-based fraud cases since 2021, securing over 60 convictions, according to court records.

Investigators allege the schemes spanned multiple federal programs, including child nutrition, housing stabilization and child care assistance, with potential losses estimated in the billions of dollars.

Against this backdrop, Democratic Gov Tim Walz announced on Monday that he would not seek reelection to a third term.

“Every minute I spend defending my own political interests would be a minute I can’t spend defending the people of Minnesota against the criminals who prey on our generosity and the cynics who prey on our differences,” Walz said in a statement.

“So I’ve decided to step out of the race and let others worry about the election while I focus on the work,” he added.