Fact Check: Is Trump's claim Minneapolis crime rate dropped due to immigration efforts true?
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA: Amid the aggressive immigration crackdown in Minneapolis, President Donald Trump recently said that the crime rate in the city is down by 25-30% and credited the immigration enforcement for the removal of thousands of criminals for the result. Let us analyse the claim by the president, and fact-check its authenticity.
Claim: Immigration enforcement led to a decline in crime in Minnesota
Weeks after agents fatally shot two Americans, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, in Minneapolis, NBC’s Tom Llamas asked Trump about immigration enforcement, to which he said, “The crime numbers in Minnesota, in Minneapolis in particular, are down 25, 30% because we’ve removed thousands of criminals from the area."
"These are hardened criminals that came in, many of them — most of them came in through an open border."
The enforcement was part of Operation Metro Surge, which was launched at the end of 2025 in Minnesota as part of the Trump administration’s immigration policies.
Fact Check: No credible data linking decline in crime to immigration efforts
ICE agents approach a house before detaining two people on January 13, 2026, in Minneapolis, Minnesota (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)However, there is no credible evidence linking the decline in crime to the federal immigration arrests. Although there has been a slight decline in crime in the city, as highlighted by Trump, these numbers had already been coming down before the operation.
On February 4, the White House said that federal immigration agents arrested more than 4,000 immigrants during the operation, but it did not say how many of those arrests were in Minneapolis or how many of the people detained had criminal histories.
According to media reports, some people arrested in the course of the operation, or another federal operation, held legal status, were US citizens, or had pending asylum cases.
For federal arrests to explain the drop in burglaries and robberies, there needs to be clear evidence that many of those crimes were committed by immigrants.
However, while the administration has pointed out specific cases, it has not shared complete details on the 4,000 arrests. This leaves it unclear how many had criminal records or were involved in crimes like burglary or robbery.
End of enforcement surge in Minneapolis
The Trump administration announced on Thursday, February 12, that its months-long immigration enforcement surge in Minneapolis will soon conclude.
White House Border Czar Tom Homan said that he recommended ending the operation, to which Trump agreed.
Speaking at a news conference, Homan said that the surge operation had met its objectives and improved coordination between federal, state, and local officials.
