Federal immigration officials, including Border Patrol Chief Gregory Bovino, are under investigation, over their conduct during operations in Minneapolis, local prosecutors have announced.
Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said in a press release on Monday that her office is investigating potential unlawful behavior by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents under Operation Metro Surge.
Prosecutors said the county attorney’s office is investigating 17 incidents reported by the community, including an encounter on January 21 in which Bovino was seen deploying a chemical agent into a crowd of protesters near Mueller Park.
Investigators are also examining alleged uses of force involving CBP and ICE personnel, including encounters with journalists, and legal observers.
“We will investigate and pursue charging where appropriate, and we’ll seek collaboration with local law enforcement wherever and whenever needed,” Hennepin County Attorney Moriarty said in a press release.
The Department of Homeland Security responded in a statement on Monday night, saying states cannot prosecute federal officers.
“What these States are trying to do is unlawful, and they know it,” the statement said. “Federal officials acting in the course of their duties are immune from liability under state law.”
Operation Metro Surge, which began in December, deployed thousands of federal agents to Minneapolis and St. Paul, in an effort to apprehend and deport undocumented immigrants and investigate alleged fraud in the Somali-American community.
The operation was quickly overshadowed after federal agents shot and killed Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti within weeks. In the weeks following the shootings, federal officials scaled back the operation and many of the surge personnel deployed to the Twin Cities were withdrawn.
ICE and Border Patrol have faced several allegations of misconduct as they barrel forward to enact President Donald Trump’s mass deportation agenda.
