The Trump administration has launched a large-scale deployment of Department of Homeland Security personnel to Minnesota’s Twin Cities as it intensifies federal enforcement actions tied to a widening fraud investigation, multiple law enforcement officials told CBS News.
According to the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the operation has not been publicly announced, the initiative could involve close to 2,000 agents drawn from Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations division and Homeland Security Investigations, the agency’s criminal investigative arm.
The plan calls for a 30-day surge of federal operations in the Twin Cities, making the metropolitan area the first major focus of the administration’s expanded immigration enforcement push in the new year.
HSI personnel are expected to concentrate on alleged fraud cases, building on inspections conducted at dozens of Minneapolis-area sites last month.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commander Gregory Bovino, who previously oversaw controversial immigration operations in cities including Los Angeles, Chicago, Charlotte and New Orleans, is expected to arrive in Minnesota to help coordinate enforcement efforts, officials said. An unspecified number of U.S. Border Patrol agents are also anticipated to participate.
The deployment, which began on Sunday, marks one of the most significant concentrations of DHS personnel in a single U.S. city in recent years, sharply increasing the federal law enforcement footprint in Minnesota amid growing political and community tensions.
Senior officials said the surge includes several hundred additional HSI agents alongside hundreds of ICE ERO officers responsible for immigration arrests and deportations.
Specialized tactical units known as Special Response Teams are also slated for the operation, supported by a multilayered command structure involving dozens of senior supervisors.
One former law enforcement official described the scale of the operation as unprecedented, noting that the number of HSI agents being sent to Minneapolis is comparable to the entire HSI workforce assigned to Arizona.
“This is a massive resource allocation,” the official said, adding that Minneapolis is effectively becoming “the new Chicago,” a reference to past large-scale federal enforcement efforts in Illinois.
Officials told CBS News the federal presence could grow even further over the course of the month-long deployment, with as many as 600 HSI agents and up to 1,500 ICE ERO officers rotating through the Twin Cities area.
The expanded crackdown follows an immigration enforcement campaign launched late last year, known as Operation Metro Surge, which targeted immigrants with final deportation orders, including individuals from Somalia. As of December 19, ICE reported nearly 700 arrests linked to the operation.
Minnesota has faced heightened scrutiny in recent years due to a series of major fraud cases involving federally funded programs.
These include some of the largest pandemic-era and post-pandemic fraud schemes in the country, such as the Feeding Our Future case, which resulted in dozens of indictments and convictions.
Since 2021, federal prosecutors have charged more than 90 individuals in Minnesota-based fraud cases, with over 60 convictions recorded so far.
Investigators say the alleged schemes cut across multiple federal programs, including nutrition assistance, housing stabilization and child care subsidies, with potential losses estimated in the billions of dollars.
Federal activity has noticeably increased across the Minneapolis area in recent weeks, with HSI agents canvassing businesses and ICE officers making arrests in and around immigrant-dense neighborhoods.
The stepped-up enforcement has sparked protests, confrontations and widespread anxiety, particularly within Minnesota’s large Somali-American community.
President Trump has frequently cited Somalia when defending his mass deportation agenda. Last month, he referred to people from the country in harsh terms, saying they were “garbage” and “contribute nothing.”
“I don’t want them in our country. I’ll be honest with you,” the president said. “Their country’s no good for a reason. Their country stinks.”
Minnesota officials, led by Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, have pushed back against claims of inaction, pointing to audits, third-party reviews, the appointment of a program-integrity director and the establishment of a statewide fraud-prevention council.
However, Walz, the Democratic vice-presidential nominee in 2024, announced Monday that he will not seek a third term as criticism intensified.
Two sources familiar with the matter told CBS News that the governor met with Sen. Amy Klobuchar on Sunday, as the senator weighs whether to enter the race.
Meanwhile, the Department of Health and Human Services has frozen $185 million in federal child care funding to Minnesota, citing ongoing fraud concerns.
State leaders have warned that the funding halt, combined with the heightened federal law enforcement presence, could negatively impact legitimate businesses and families who depend on public assistance programs.
