'Inciting insurrection': Trump blasts Minnesota leaders after fatal ICE shooting in Minneapolis

US President Donald Trump accused Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey of “inciting insurrection through their rhetoric" after federal agents fatally shot a man during an immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis. State and local officials pushed back, criticising the federal response and questioning how the investigation was handled.

“The Mayor and the Governor are inciting Insurrection, with their pompous, dangerous, and arrogant rhetoric! Instead, these sanctimonious political fools should be looking for the Billions of Dollars that has been stolen from the people of Minnesota, and the United States of America,” Trump said in a post on his social media platform, Social Truth.

Trump questioned why local police were not deployed to protect Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers and claimed authorities had been prevented from carrying out their duties.

More from World

US federal agents shoot dead man in Minneapolis amid immigration crackdown, protests intensify Thousands brave icy weather to protest against ICE in Minneapolis after 5-year-old's detention

“This is the gunman’s gun, loaded (with two additional full magazines!), and ready to go – What is that all about? Where are the local Police? Why weren’t they allowed to protect ICE Officers? The Mayor and the Governor called them off?” Trump wrote, describing the deceased as armed and suggesting ICE agents were forced to protect themselves.

“Those Fraudsters who stole the money are going to jail, where they belong! This is no different than a really big Bank Robbery,” Trump said, adding that public criticism of federal enforcement actions was “a cover up for this theft and fraud.”

Quick Reads

View All

Dialogues to continue as Ukraine peace talks end without deal after overnight Russian strikes

EU refused to impose tariffs on India due to ‘big trade deal’, Trump aide says

He concluded the post by repeating his accusation that state and city leaders were “inciting insurrection” through “pompous, dangerous, and arrogant rhetoric,” and wrote in capital letters: “LET OUR ICE PATRIOTS DO THEIR JOB!”

State leaders challenge federal role in investigation

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz said Saturday that federal authorities “cannot be trusted” to investigate the fatal shooting of an American man in his state by immigration officers.

“The federal government cannot be trusted to lead this investigation. The state will handle it period,” said Walz, accusing the federal immigration operation underway in his state of “sowing chaos and violence.

The comments followed the shooting of a Minneapolis resident by federal agents during the enforcement operation. The incident came after the January 7 killing of 37-year-old Renee Good, who was fatally shot when an ICE officer fired into her vehicle during a separate federal operation amid the Trump administration’s ongoing immigration crackdown.

Walz, a Democrat, condemned the federal actions and called for an immediate halt to the operations.

“This is sickening. The President must end this operation. Pull the thousands of violent, untrained officers out of Minnesota. Now,” Walz wrote on X.

Police chief confirms details of latest shooting

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said the latest victim was an American citizen and a lawful gun owner with a permit to carry. He confirmed that multiple federal officers were involved in the shooting.

The incident has intensified tensions between state officials and the Trump administration as federal immigration enforcement expands in Minnesota, drawing sharp criticism from local leaders and renewed political backlash from the White House.