The Department of Homeland Security said Border Patrol and ICE agents in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area were repeatedly harassed by protesters while trying to use restrooms during a targeted enforcement operation. DHS said crowds followed agents at gas stations, shouted, threw food, spat on an officer and at times attacked or tried to block law enforcement vehicles, forcing the use of crowd-control measures. The post also referenced a prior incident at a Broadview municipal building and noted heightened tensions after the shooting of Renee Goodin and a controversial arrest of a five-year-old and his father. DHS's account reflects its perspective; some details have not been independently verified and the events remain politically charged.
DHS Says Protesters Harassed Border Patrol and ICE Agents Trying To Use Restrooms During Minneapolis Operation
anti-ICE protest
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said on social media that Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) personnel operating in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area were repeatedly harassed by protesters while attempting to take restroom breaks during a targeted enforcement operation.
In a post on X, DHS described multiple incidents at gas stations where agents stopped to use the restroom. The post said hostile crowds followed and shouted at agents, sometimes tried to block law enforcement vehicles, and at times turned physical.
“Today, Border Patrol agents who were in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area as part of a targeted enforcement operation were repeatedly harassed and blocked by hostile crowds while simply trying to take bathroom breaks.
At each gas station where the agents stopped to use the restroom, groups of agitators appeared, yelled at them, stalked them, and even tried to prevent law enforcement vehicles from leaving, creating unsafe conditions. At one stop, individuals in the crowd threw food at the agents. At their final gas station stop, someone spit on an agent. When an agent moved to detain the person who spit on him, the crowd tackled and attacked the agents while surrounding them.
To safely clear the area agents had to use crowd control measures to disperse the hostile crowd.”
DHS also referenced an October incident in which agents said they were denied access to a municipal building in Broadview, Illinois, when they requested to use the bathroom. The department said the current enforcement activity is part of a larger operation and has at times asserted authority to enter homes without a judicial warrant, a claim that has been publicly controversial.
The social-media post framed the gas-station encounters as an example of escalating tensions between immigration enforcement personnel and some community members in the Twin Cities. Those tensions intensified after the fatal shooting of Renee Goodin by an ICE agent, Jonathan Ross, which prompted sharp criticism from local officials. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey publicly rebuked ICE, and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz called for federal action to curb what he described as aggressive enforcement tactics.
The post also comes after a separate, widely reported incident in which ICE agents in Minneapolis arrested a five-year-old and his father as they returned home from school; the family’s attorney alleged agents used the child as bait to prompt someone to open the door.
Claims in the DHS post reflect the department’s account of these encounters. Independent verification of each specific allegation reported by DHS is limited in available public reporting; local officials and protesters have sometimes offered different accounts of confrontations with enforcement agents. The situation remains contentious and under close public and political scrutiny.
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