Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar from Minnesota reported that federal immigration agents stopped her son on Saturday and requested proof of his citizenship. She added that her son “always carries” his passport with him when he is out and about.
“Yesterday, after he made a stop at Target, he did get pulled over by [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] agents, and once he was able to produce his passport ID, they did let him go,” Omar said in an interview with Esme Murphy on WCCO Sunday Morning.
After that, she said she “had to remind him just how worried I am, because all of these areas that they are talking about are areas where he could possibly find himself in and they are racially profiling, they are looking for young men who look Somali that they think are undocumented.”
Earlier this month, federal immigration agents increased their presence in the Twin Cities region of Minneapolis and St. Paul to target undocumented Somali immigrants.
More than 400 illegal immigrants have been arrested in Minnesota as part of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) initiative known as Operation Metro Surge, the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement on Friday, per The Epoch Times.
According to DHS, the operation focused on individuals with serious criminal records. The agency said the enforcement effort targeted people it described as posing significant public safety risks.
The arrests took place amid broader debate over so-called sanctuary policies, which refer to state or local practices that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities. Minnesota is considered a sanctuary jurisdiction under the criteria outlined by the Department of Justice in an Aug. 5 statement.
DHS said those arrested included a Burmese national convicted of third-degree criminal sexual conduct involving force or coercion, a Somali national convicted of robbery, a Laotian national convicted of first-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a child under 13, and an Ecuadorian national previously arrested for assaulting a police officer.
In a statement, DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin criticized Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, both of whom have opposed ICE enforcement actions, saying their positions have failed to adequately protect residents of the state.
“They let these monsters and child predators roam free,” McLaughlin said. “Thanks to our brave law enforcement, Minnesota is safer with these thugs off their streets.”
The arrests come as immigration enforcement officers continue to face a surge in attacks nationwide.
On Dec. 12, DHS said an ICE officer was attacked by a criminal illegal immigrant in Tullos, Louisiana, who “savagely bit the officer’s hand while resisting arrest.”
Meanwhile, Omar announced that she has launched two formal congressional inquiries into recent immigration enforcement actions by the Trump administration affecting Somali communities in Minnesota and nationwide.
In a letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Omar requested information about Operation Metro Surge, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement deployment in the Twin Cities area. Omar alleged that the operation has involved racial profiling, the detention of U.S. citizens, the use of excessive force, and violations of constitutional rights.
Omar’s letter cited reported incidents in which individuals who said they were U.S. citizens were detained by ICE agents, a woman wearing a hijab was mocked, pepper spray was used on bystanders, and agents carried out arrests near homes, schools, and a university campus without presenting warrants.
The New York Times reported that roughly 100 ICE agents were deployed to Minnesota as part of the operation.
In a separate letter to Noem, Omar, and several other members of Congress, also sought an explanation for the administration’s consideration of ending Temporary Protected Status for Somali nationals living in the United States.
