ICE agents begin 2026 with first full-scale raid in a Minnesota factory

ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents conducted a full-scale raid in Arden Hills, Minnesota, on Friday, January 2, amid the ongoing detention and deportation of illegal immigrants.

ICE also carried out multiple raids across Minnesota on Christmas Eve, detaining hundreds of illegal immigrants who are now being held for deportation.

ICE conducts first big raid of 2026 in Arden Hills

In a video shared by an X user, several ICE agents were seen conducting a raid in a factory in Arden Hills, Minnesota, making it the first big one of 2026.

The caption of the video read, "BREAKING: Massive ICE raid hits a factory in Arden Hills, Minnesota, with the first big one of 2026. Agents didn’t even wait for the coffee to brew. The year just started, and they’re already in beast mode. This is what winning looks like." 

The viral clip showed people protesting against the raids as they spoke in Spanish while the ICE agents waited outside the factory. The video later showed ICE agents leaving the spot in their vehicles.

On Monday, December 29, ICE agents conducted a door-to-door sweep at sites linked to Minnesota's massive billion-dollar fraud mess. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) posted a video on X showing two agents walking into Nicollet Tobacco & Vape in Burnsville and grilling a woman behind the counter about a nearby closed building.

"DHS is on the ground in Minneapolis, going DOOR TO DOOR at suspected fraud sites," DHS wrote in its X post.

The ICE raids across Minnesota are taking place after Minnesota’s fraud scandal was recently exposed. The scam took place over the last five years and came to light in 2025 when it was found that many people were reportedly stealing from a government program meant to feed children during the Covid-19 pandemic. 

ICE arrests violent convicts during Christmas week

ICE arrested many of the 'worst of the worst' criminal undocumented individuals on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, an action described as the 'greatest gift of all' for American families by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). 

DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said that while most Americans were spending time with family, ICE agents were actively working and putting 'their lives on the line' to locate and detain 'gang members, murderers, drug traffickers, and violent thugs.' 

In an official statement about the timing of the arrests, McLaughlin said, "While families across the country joined together for Christmas celebrations, ICE continued delivering the American people the greatest gift of all: getting criminals out of our neighborhoods and protecting our families."

"We are thankful for our law enforcement who sacrifice time with their family and put their lives on the line to remove the worst of the worst," she added.

The operation led to the arrest of individuals from a wide range of nations, including Mexico, Cuba, Somalia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Sudan, the Dominican Republic, and Venezuela, all of whom had prior criminal convictions.