Trump accuses Minnesota leaders of ‘inciting insurrection’ after fatal ICE shooting in Minneapolis

US President Donald Trump has accused Minnesota’s governor and Minneapolis mayor of “inciting insurrection” after federal agents fatally shot a Minneapolis resident during an immigration enforcement operation. The killing has deepened tensions between the Trump administration and Democratic leaders, fuelling nationwide debate over the tactics, oversight, and legality of expanded federal immigration enforcement.

US President Donald Trump has accused Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey of “inciting insurrection” following the fatal shooting of a man by federal agents during an immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis.

In a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump said the Democratic governor and mayor were using “pompous, dangerous, and arrogant rhetoric” and claimed they were undermining federal authorities. “The Mayor and the Governor are inciting Insurrection,” Trump wrote. “Instead, these sanctimonious political fools should be looking for the Billions of Dollars that have been stolen from the people of Minnesota, and the United States of America.”

Trump questioned why local police were not deployed to assist Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers and suggested they had been deliberately prevented from doing so.

“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?” he wrote. “Why weren’t they allowed to protect ICE Officers? The Mayor and the Governor called them off?”

Referring to ICE agents as “patriots”, Trump urged Americans to allow them to carry out their work and alleged widespread fraud in Minnesota. He claimed that individuals who had “stolen money from the people of Minnesota and the United States of America” would be jailed, adding that 12,000 “illegal alien criminals” had been arrested and removed from the state.

“Those Fraudsters who stole the money are going to jail, where they belong,” Trump wrote. “This is no different than a really big Bank Robbery.” He accused critics of federal enforcement actions of using public outrage as “a cover-up for this theft and fraud”, concluding: “LET OUR ICE PATRIOTS DO THEIR JOB!”

The comments follow the killing of a Minneapolis resident during a federal immigration enforcement operation involving ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Democratic leaders identified the victim as Alex Jeffrey Pretti, a Veterans Affairs nurse and US citizen.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said the shooting occurred at about 9:05 am CT, while officers were “conducting a targeted operation in Minneapolis against an illegal alien wanted for violent assault”.

According to DHS, “an individual approached US Border Patrol officers with a 9mm semi-automatic handgun”. The department said officers attempted to disarm him, but that “the armed suspect violently resisted”.

“Fearing for his life and the lives and safety of fellow officers, an agent fired defensive shots,” DHS said. Medics provided immediate medical aid, but the man was pronounced dead at the scene.

DHS said the individual was carrying two magazines and no identification, adding, “This looks like a situation where an individual wanted to do maximum damage and massacre law enforcement.” The department said the incident remained under investigation and that further details would be released.

The department also claimed that about 200 protesters arrived at the scene and attempted to obstruct and assault officers, prompting the deployment of crowd control measures “for the safety of the public and law enforcement”.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz strongly condemned the federal operation and called for it to be halted immediately.

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

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

Democratic leaders across the country rejected the administration’s account and demanded accountability.

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries described the killing as “a horrific, preventable tragedy”, accusing “lawless and masked thugs masquerading as law enforcement officers” of killing an American citizen “without justification”.

“The American people deserve a thorough, independent investigation without interference or obstruction by DHS,” Jeffries said, adding that “every single federal agent responsible for the unjustified killing of another civilian must be held criminally accountable to the full extent of the law”.

Minnesota Representative Ilhan Omar said the shooting appeared to involve immigration enforcement agents. “This appears to be an execution by immigration enforcement,” she said. “I am absolutely heartbroken, horrified, and appalled that federal agents murdered another member of our community.”

Omar said the incident reflected a broader pattern under the Trump administration. “This isn’t isolated or accidental,” she said. “The Trump administration is trying to beat us into submission rather than protect us.” She accused ICE and CBP of “violating constitutional rights under the guise of immigration enforcement”.

House Homeland Security Committee ranking member Bennie G. Thompson said the killing “should shock all Americans”, alleging that “yet another US citizen has been killed in cold blood by ICE and CBP in Minneapolis”.

He accused DHS of attempting to shape public perception, saying that “within minutes, DHS and its mass propaganda machine slandered and attacked the deceased individual with no evidence”. Thompson called for ICE and CBP to leave Minneapolis immediately and demanded the release of body-camera footage.

Reaction also came from outside Minnesota. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said she had learned of “yet another tragic shooting in Minneapolis at the hands of federal agents” and warned that “this violence has to stop”.

Bass said the president “must remove these armed, federal forces from Minneapolis and other American cities”, adding that she had joined mayors nationwide in a federal court challenge against what she described as the administration’s “unconstitutional and unlawful deployment of federal agents in the Twin Cities”.

She described Operation Metro Surge as “unacceptable” and warned against allowing the federal government to “turn cities into war zones”.

The killing follows the January 7 death of Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old Minneapolis resident who was fatally shot when an ICE officer fired into her vehicle during a separate federal operation.

The latest incident has further intensified national debate over the scope, tactics, and oversight of federal immigration enforcement under the Trump administration, particularly in Democratic-led states and cities. Minnesota has seen repeated protests in recent weeks as the expanded federal presence continues, with sharply conflicting accounts from federal authorities and local officials over public safety and enforcement practices.

(With IANS inputs)