Minneapolis (Somalia Today) — Federal immigration officers shot and killed a man in Minneapolis on Saturday, sparking fresh outrage and clashes with protesters in a city already on edge following a similar deadly incident just weeks earlier.
The shooting occurred around 9:00 am (1500 GMT) in the “Eat Street” neighborhood near East 26th Street and Nicollet Avenue.
It marks the second fatal shooting by federal agents in the city this month, intensifying calls from local leaders for the Trump administration to halt its sweeping immigration crackdown in the state.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara confirmed that a 37-year-old white male, believed to be a US citizen and a Minneapolis resident, died at the scene.
O’Hara noted that police believe the man was a “lawful gun owner with a permit to carry,” though he declined to release the victim’s name pending family notification.
The killing immediately drew hundreds of protesters to the site, where tensions boiled over. Demonstrators screamed “cowards” and “go home” at lines of federal agents in tactical gear, who deployed flash-bang grenades and batons to push back the crowd.
“They’re killing my neighbors!” shouted Minneapolis resident Josh Koskie, capturing the raw anger pulsating through the crowd.
Video circulating on social media appeared to show a chaotic struggle between agents and the man before shots rang out.
In the aftermath, one federal officer was heard mockingly telling jeering protesters, “Boo hoo,” while others shoved a demonstrator into a vehicle.
‘Violently resisted’
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) defended the use of lethal force, stating that agents were conducting a “targeted operation” to apprehend an undocumented immigrant wanted for violent assault when they were approached by a different man armed with a handgun.
“The officers attempted to disarm the suspect, but the armed suspect violently resisted,” DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement.
“Fearing for his life and the lives and safety of fellow officers, an agent fired defensive shots.”
McLaughlin added that the man carried a 9mm semi-automatic handgun and two ammunition magazines.
Local officials, however, sharply criticized the federal presence. Police Chief O’Hara publicly appealed for federal agencies to operate with “discipline, humanity and integrity,” implicitly contrasting their tactics with local standards.
“We recognize that there is a lot of anger and a lot of questions around what has happened,” O’Hara said, urging the public to remain peaceful while demanding accountability from federal partners.
Political firestorm
The shooting has deepened the rift between Minnesota’s Democratic leadership and the White House. Governor Tim Walz said he had contacted the White House immediately after the incident to demand the withdrawal of federal forces.
“Pull the thousands of violent, untrained officers out of Minnesota. Now,” Walz wrote on X, formerly Twitter, condemning the “sickening” violence.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey went further, describing the federal operation as an “invasion” of masked agents acting with impunity.
The incident follows the January 7 killing of Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother and poet, who was shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer while in her vehicle just over a mile from Saturday’s scene.
That shooting had already sparked daily demonstrations and a massive “economic blackout” protest on Friday, where thousands shuttered businesses and marched through the freezing city to demand ICE’s departure.
As night fell Saturday, protesters dragged dumpsters into the streets to form barricades, chanting “ICE out now.”
The Trump administration has described its current campaign in Minnesota as its “largest-ever immigration enforcement operation,” a central pillar of the president’s second-term agenda.
However, the mounting death toll has drawn scrutiny from human rights groups and escalated fears among immigrant communities and their allies across the Twin Cities.
“Minnesota has had it,” Walz said. “The President must end this operation.”
