The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is launching a large-scale federal enforcement operation in Minnesota, sending roughly 2,000 officers and agents to the Twin Cities for a monthlong deployment that combines immigration enforcement with an expanding fraud investigation.
According to reporting by The Wall Street Journal and CBS News, the operation will focus largely on the Minneapolis–St. Paul area and is expected to last about 30 days. Federal officials say the surge is part of a coordinated effort to address both unlawful immigration and alleged misuse of federal social services programs.
Large federal presence
The deployment will include approximately 1,500 immigration enforcement and deportation officers, alongside about 600 agents from Homeland Security Investigations. The operation is expected to be led by Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino, who has previously overseen high-profile immigration crackdowns in cities including Los Angeles, Chicago, Charlotte and New Orleans.
The scale of the operation marks one of the largest concentrations of federal law enforcement personnel in Minnesota in recent years. One former law enforcement official described the deployment to CBS News as “massive.”
Follow-up to earlier enforcement action
The current surge follows a December enforcement effort known as “Operation Metro Surge,” during which federal authorities conducted immigration actions across Minneapolis. DHS said that operation resulted in hundreds of arrests, including individuals accused of committing crimes while in the country illegally.
Federal officials say the new deployment builds on that earlier effort while significantly expanding investigative resources tied to fraud cases.
Expanding fraud investigation
Minnesota has been under sustained federal scrutiny for several years due to alleged fraud involving federally funded social services programs. Prosecutors say at least 90 individuals have been charged so far, with roughly 60 convictions, many involving members of the Twin Cities’ Somali community.
The most prominent case centers on the Feeding Our Future nonprofit, where federal prosecutors allege that defendants diverted millions of dollars from a child nutrition program intended to feed low-income children. Forty-seven people were charged in that case alone.
Investigators are now examining additional programs, including child care subsidies, housing assistance and Medicaid. The Minnesota Star Tribune has reported documented losses exceeding $200 million in recent years. The Justice Department and the Trump administration have asserted that the total losses could reach as high as $9 billion.
In response to the allegations, the administration has frozen certain federal child care funds allocated to Minnesota while investigations continue.
Political repercussions
The fraud investigations and enforcement actions have had significant political consequences within the state. On Monday, Democratic Gov. Tim Walz announced that he would not seek re-election in November, stating, “the buck does stop with me.” Walz had previously pledged to strengthen oversight and address systemic weaknesses that allowed fraud to occur.
Part of a broader ICE expansion
The Minnesota deployment comes amid a nationwide increase in immigration enforcement staffing. DHS announced over the weekend that it has hired approximately 12,000 additional Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers and agents in less than a year, expanding the workforce from about 10,000 to 22,000.
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