Minnesota Governor Tim Walz speaks at a press convention on the State Emergency Operations Heart in Blaine, Minn. on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026.
Alex Kormann | The Minnesota Star Tribune | Getty Pictures
The U.S. Justice Division has opened a felony investigation of Minnesota officers, together with Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, over an alleged conspiracy to impede immigration brokers, a supply accustomed to the probe stated on Friday.
The supply, who spoke on the situation of anonymity, stated subpoenas have been ready for Walz and Frey as a part of the inquiry, but it surely was not instantly clear whether or not they had been served.
The investigation, first reported by CBS Information, stems from statements made by Walz and Frey concerning the hundreds of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers and Border Patrol brokers deployed to the Minneapolis area in latest weeks beneath orders from President Donald Trump, the supply stated.
Reacting on social media to information of the investigation, Walz, who unsuccessfully ran for the vice presidency within the 2024 election received by Trump, stated the federal justice system was being weaponized to intimidate Trump’s perceived political enemies.
“Two days in the past it was Elissa Slotkin. Final week it was Jerome Powell. Earlier than that, Mark Kelly. Weaponizing the justice system in opposition to your opponents is an authoritarian tactic,” Walz stated.
The governor was referring to U.S. Senators Elissa Slotkin and Mark Kelly, Democrats from Michigan and Arizona, who made a video assertion urging members of the navy to withstand unlawful orders, and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, whom Trump has criticized as being too hesitant to lift rates of interest.
Reacting to a CNN report on the investigation, Frey stated individually: “That is an apparent try and intimidate me for standing up for Minneapolis, native legislation enforcement, and residents in opposition to the chaos and hazard this Administration has delivered to our metropolis.”
The Justice Division declined to remark. However U.S. Lawyer Common Pam Bondi posted a message on social media platform X on Friday night, saying: “A reminder to all these in Minnesota; Nobody is above the legislation.”
It will be extremely uncommon for federal prosecutors to deliver a felony conspiracy case based mostly on statements from public officers about authorities insurance policies.
The Trump administration has despatched almost 3,000 federal brokers to Minnesota since early final week, triggering offended protests in Minneapolis over the surge in immigration brokers on the streets of the state’s most populous metropolis.
Confrontations between residents and federal officers have grow to be more and more tense after an ICE agent fatally shot a U.S. citizen, Renee Good, 37, behind the wheel of her automotive, in Minneapolis on January 7, triggering day by day protests which have unfold to different cities.
Though he has urged protesters to stay peaceable, Walz additionally has inspired residents to report video of any arrests or different encounters between ICE brokers and members of the general public in an effort to create a database for potential “future prosecution” of wrongdoing by legislation enforcement.
Walz and Frey have repeatedly demanded that Trump finish the ICE deployment, saying the militarized deportation drive was a reckless operation geared toward sowing chaos, worry and headlines, and was placing civilians at risk.
Deputy U.S. Lawyer Common Todd Blanche earlier this week blamed Walz and Frey for the confrontations and stated he was targeted on stopping them by “no matter means mandatory.”
