MINNEAPOLIS — A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer shot and killed a woman during an immigration raid in south Minneapolis, federal officials said, claiming she tried to ram agents with her vehicle — an assertion the city’s mayor blasted as “bullsh*t” and demanded ICE leave the city.
The fatal encounter, which has ignited protests and dueling narratives, unfolded near 34th Street and Portland Avenue, according to local reports. The woman, described by Mayor Jacob Frey as a 37-year-old whose name has not been released, was struck by gunfire after agents approached her vehicle during an enforcement operation.
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A video of the incident circulating on social media — which has not been independently verified — appears to show a Honda SUV blocking unmarked law enforcement vehicles on a snow-covered street. As officers move toward the SUV and tug at a door handle, the vehicle begins to pull away. An agent then fires three shots with a handgun as the SUV departs.
The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, called the incident an act of self-defense. “Attempting to run over our law enforcement officers in an attempt to kill them — an act of domestic terrorism,” DHS said in a post on X. “An ICE officer, fearing for his life, the lives of his fellow law enforcement and the safety of the public, fired defensive shots.” DHS said the woman died at the scene and that ICE officers who were hurt are expected to recover.
Frey, who has been a vocal critic of federal immigration actions in Minneapolis, rejected the federal account and urged agents to leave the city. “We’ve dreaded this moment since the early stages of this ICE presence in Minneapolis,” he said. He later characterized the self-defense claim as “bullsh*t.”
President Donald Trump backed the federal narrative, saying the shooting appeared to be justified. On Truth Social, he said the driver “violently, willfully, and viciously ran over the ICE Officer,” adding that the agent “seems to have shot her in self defense.”
DHS chief Kristi Noem told reporters in Texas that ICE officers “were attempting to push out their vehicle, and a woman attacked them and those surrounding them and attempted to run them over and ram them with her vehicle.”
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz pushed back, accusing the Trump administration of running a “propaganda machine.” In a social media post, he urged Minnesotans not to accept the federal narrative at face value and promised “a full, fair, and expeditious investigation to ensure accountability and justice.”
Tensions flared across the south Minneapolis neighborhood as word of the shooting spread. Footage aired by CBS affiliate WCCO showed ICE officers pepper-spraying and shoving protesters as they attempted to push through an enforcement perimeter. Dozens of people gathered near the scene, with one bystander telling reporters, “There’s no way whatever this person did that they deserved to be killed for it.”
The death comes amid heightened protests against ICE operations and broader immigration raids. The Trump administration has prioritized arresting and deporting undocumented migrants, tightening entry and visa conditions while tasking ICE with significantly ramped-up removals — a mission critics say has militarized the agency’s presence in local communities.
DHS, in its online statement, further alleged dramatic increases in assaults and threats against officers during recent operations. Local officials, including Frey and Walz, have called for transparency around the Minneapolis shooting and for all relevant footage to be reviewed.
Authorities have not released the woman’s identity or provided a detailed timeline of the incident. It was not immediately clear which agency will lead the investigation, though the governor pledged state involvement. As night fell, protesters continued to call for accountability while federal and local leaders traded blame over the conduct and consequences of immigration raids in Minneapolis.
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
