WASHINGTON – The Department of Homeland Security announced on Tuesday that it has begun a massive deployment of federal agents and officers to the Twin Cities area in Minnesota for a crackdown amid several fraud scandals.
“The largest DHS operation ever is happening right now in Minnesota,” the department said in a post on X.
The Trump administration has planned to deploy an estimated 2,000 ICE and DHS agents, according to a U.S. official who spoke with CBS News.
The plan is for officials to lead a month-long increase in operations within the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. Federal investigators aim to address suspicions of fraud.
A video posted on X showed Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem joining ICE agents during an arrest. “You will be held accountable for your crimes,” Noem asserts as she talks to an apprehended suspect.
Additionally, according to officials, Gregory Bovino, Commander of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, is expected to take charge during the Minnesota surge. Bovino has previously led immigration crackdowns in Los Angeles, Chicago, Charlotte, and New Orleans.
The operation, which began on Sunday, is one of the largest immigration enforcement crackdowns within an American city in several years.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) condemned the mission, describing it as “a war that’s being waged against Minnesota.”
“You’re seeing that we have a ridiculous surge of apparently 2,000 people not coordinating with us, that are for a show of cameras,” Walz told reporters in Minneapolis on Tuesday.
Most recently, Walz announced he was ending his campaign for a third term for the gubernatorial seat.
The deployment of federal agents in Minnesota comes amid Minnesota’s mishandling of several high-profile fraud cases. One of the most recent scandals, the Feeding Our Future case, led to several indictments and convictions.
In response to recent events, the Trump Administration’s Department of Health and Human Services has additionally stepped in, freezing $185 million in federal childcare payments to Minnesota.
