Immigration and Customs Enforcement says 2,000 federal agents have been sent to the Minneapolis area to carry out ‘largest immigration operation ever’

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration has launched what officials described as the largest federal immigration enforcement operation ever undertaken, preparing to deploy up to 2,000 federal agents and officers to the Minneapolis area for a sweeping crackdown tied in part to fraud allegations involving Somali residents.

This surge significantly expands the reach of federal law enforcement in Minnesota amid rising political and community tensions. Todd Lyons, acting director of ICE, during an interview with Newsmax, described the crackdown as “the largest immigration operation the agency has ever undertaken.”

Read more: Noem says the Department of Homeland Security is investigating fraud in Minneapolis

Neither Lyons nor Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin would say how many officers were involved.

A person familiar with the operation told The Associated Press that the Department of Homeland Security plans to send up to 2,000 officers to the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. The person was not authorized to discuss details of the operations publicly, and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Immigrant rights groups and elected officials in the Twin Cities reported a sharp increase Tuesday in sightings by federal agents, particularly around St. Paul. Several customer vehicles were reported to be blocking traffic outside the business district and residential buildings.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was also present and accompanied ICE officers during at least one arrest. A video posted on X showed Noem wearing a tactical vest and knit hat as agents arrested a man in St. Paul. In the video, she tells the handcuffed man: “You will be held accountable for your crimes.”

Read more: What to know about the Trump administration freezing federal funds for child care

The Department of Homeland Security said in a news release that the man was from Ecuador and was wanted in his home country and Connecticut on charges including murder and sexual assault. She said agents arrested 150 people Monday in enforcement actions in Minneapolis.

Minnesota governor explodes

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, a Democrat, criticized the increased federal law enforcement as “a war being waged against the state of Minnesota.”

“You see we have a ridiculous increase of 2,000 people who apparently are not coordinating with us, in order to show the cameras,” Walz told reporters in Minneapolis on Tuesday, a day after he announced he was ending his campaign for a third term.

He watches: Fraud scandals and Trump’s rhetoric have heightened concerns in Minnesota’s Somali community

Many residents were already on the brink. The Trump administration singled out the Somali community in the region, which is the largest in the United States. Last month, Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara criticized federal agents for using “questionable tactics” after a confrontation between agents and protesters.

Tuesday was “unlike any other day we’ve seen,” said Molly Coleman, a St. Paul City Councilwoman whose district includes a factory where agents arrested more than a dozen people in November.

“It’s very sad,” Coleman said. “What we know is that when ICE comes into a city, it’s an enforcement operation where everyone is on their toes and afraid.”

Julia Decker, policy director at the Minnesota Immigrant Law Center, said there has been an increase in sightings of federal agents and law enforcement vehicles in locations like parking lots.

“We can definitely feel a heavy presence,” said Dew Dew, an organizer with the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee, which sends response teams to customer reports.

Surge involves investigators who focus on fraud allegations

Nearly three-quarters of the law enforcement personnel are expected to come from ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations, which carries out immigrant arrests and deportations, the person familiar with the process said. The force also includes agents from Homeland Security Investigations, the investigative arm of ICE, which typically focuses on fraud and transnational criminal networks.

Lyons said HSI agents were going door to door in the Twin Cities area investigating allegations of fraud, human smuggling and illegal employment practices.

HSI agents are largely expected to focus on identifying suspected fraud, while deportation officers will arrest immigrants accused of violating immigration law, according to the person familiar with the process. Specialized tactical units are also expected to participate.

The operation also includes personnel from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, including Cmdr. said Gregory Bovino, a person familiar with the deployment process. Bovino’s tactics during previous federal operations in other cities have drawn scrutiny from local officials and civil rights advocates.

Hilton drops Minnesota hotel that canceled agent reservations

Hilton said in a statement Tuesday that it had removed a Minnesota hotel from its systems for “not meeting our standards and values” when it refused to provide service to federal customers.

The Hampton Inn Lakeville, located about 20 miles (32 kilometers) outside Minneapolis, apologized Monday for canceling reservations for federal customers, saying it would work to accommodate them. The hotel, like most Hampton Inns, is owned and operated by a franchisee.

Hampton Inn Lakeville did not respond to requests for comment.

Federal authorities began increasing immigration arrests in the Minneapolis area late last year. Noem and FBI Director Cash Patel announced last week that federal agencies are ramping up operations in Minnesota, focusing on fraud investigations.

President Donald Trump has repeatedly linked his administration’s anti-immigration crackdown in Minnesota to fraud cases related to federal nutrition and pandemic assistance programs, many of which have implicated defendants of Somali descent.

The person with information about the current operation warned that its scope and duration may change in the coming days as it develops.

Balsamo reported from New York. Associated Press journalists Steve Karnovsky in Minneapolis, Sofia Tarin in Chicago, Sarah Reda in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and Ross Bynum in Savannah, Georgia, contributed to this story.