Trump’s border czar says immigration crackdown in Minnesota will ‘conclude’
Tom Homan says Trump has backed ‘significant drawdown’ in the state, where two US citizens have been killed
The Trump administration has claimed it is drawing down its immigration crackdown in Minnesota that led to the death of two US citizens, mass detentions and widespread protests.
The move was announced by Tom Homan, the US border czar, at a press briefing on Thursday.
“I have proposed, and President Trump has concurred, that this surge operation conclude,” Homan said, claiming that “a significant drawdown” had already been under way this week and would continue.
Agents in Minnesota will be returned to their normal duties or assigned elsewhere, Homan said. The number of agents in Minnesota will return to normal levels, which is about 100 agents, officials have previously said. But security teams will stay in place to respond to what Homan called “agitators” who oppose immigration agents’ work in the state.
Homan said he would remain on the ground in Minnesota for “a little longer” to oversee the drawdown of agents.
Local and state officials had expressed they were hopeful for a drawdown, based on meetings with Homan, but that they would not believe it until they saw the evidence on the ground.
During the months-long crackdown, federal agents killed two US citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, sparking protests nationwide and a surge in local organizing to follow agents and provide food and supplies for immigrants, including those with legal status, who did not feel safe leaving their homes.
Homan took over the immigration crackdown in Minnesota from Greg Bovino, a senior border patrol official, who was overseeing the operation when the killings of Good and Pretti happened.
The surge of agents began in early December, then increased again in January. The number of agents outnumbered the largest police departments in the Twin Cities.
By: Rachel Leingang, February 12, 2026
Read the full story at The Guardian
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