ICE Shooting In Minneapolis Fuels Political Firestorm
WASHINGTON, DC -A US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent fatally shot a 37-year-old woman in south Minneapolis during a federal immigration operation, an incident that drew sharply conflicting accounts from federal authorities and local officials and ignited a political dispute over the Trump administration’s enforcement tactics.
President Donald Trump and administration officials defended the agent declaring he acted in self-defense after the woman used her vehicle to threaten officers. Local leaders, citing video footage and eyewitness accounts, rejected that explanation and called for independent investigations.
Trump defended the agent in a post after viewing a video of the incident, calling it “a horrible thing to watch”. He said the woman “violently, willfully, and viciously” ran over an ICE officer, who “seems to have shot her in self-defense”.
“The situation is being studied, in its entirety,” Trump said, adding that such incidents were occurring because “the Radical Left is threatening, assaulting, and targeting our Law Enforcement Officers and ICE Agents on a daily basis”. He said ICE agents were “just trying to do the job of making America safe.”
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said he had reviewed video of the shooting and rejected the self-defense claim. “Having seen the video of myself, I want to tell everybody directly that is bullshit,” Frey said, calling it a “garbage narrative”.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz rejected the Department of Homeland Security’s narrative, urging the public to “not believe this propaganda machine.” He said the state would conduct “a full, fair, and expeditious investigation to ensure accountability and justice.”
An unrepentant Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem described the incident as “an act of domestic terrorism.”
The Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association criticized what it called “irresponsible, reckless rhetoric” from political leaders, saying such language endangered officers and urged respect for the investigative process.
Authorities said the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and the FBI were leading the investigation. Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said her office was “pushing hard” for a local investigation to ensure transparency. (IANS)
