Brad Brooks
March 2 (Reuters) – A Minnesota prosecutor said on Monday her office was investigating “potentially unlawful conduct” by federal agents in Operation Metro Surge. The crackdown targeting undocumented immigrants was met with widespread community resistance earlier this year and agents shot and killed two U.S. citizens, sparking nationwide outrage.
Mary Moriarty, the prosecutor for Hennepin County, which includes Minneapolis, said at a news conference that her office created a portal that allows the public to send in videos and other evidence of incidents they witnessed in which they believe Gregory Bovino, who once called himself the U.S. Border Patrol’s “at-large commander,” and other federal agents committed crimes.
“We will investigate and file charges where appropriate and will seek cooperation with local law enforcement whenever and wherever possible,” Moriarty said. “Make no mistake, we are not afraid of any legal fight.”
Moriarty acknowledged the difficulty of successfully prosecuting federal agents, who enjoy strong legal protections from being charged for their actions, but added: “Federal agents do not have absolute immunity.”
The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the Border Patrol and ICE, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Moriarty said the federal government has not provided any information to her office.
Moriarty’s office had earlier set up a similar portal to collect evidence from the public about the shooting deaths of Renee Goode and Alex Pretty, who were killed by federal agents. She said an investigation into their deaths was ongoing.
The surge in immigration enforcement began in early December. After the shootings of Goode and Pretty, President Donald Trump’s border czar Tom Homan took over the operation in late January from Bovino, who had been sharply criticized by Democrats and civil liberties supporters for his handling of the crackdown in Minnesota and elsewhere across the country.
In January, The Atlantic reported that Bovino had been relieved of his mobile duties and would return to his previous job as head of the Border Patrol sector in El Centro, California, citing a homeland security official and two people familiar with the matter. Neither the White House nor the Department of Homeland Security responded to requests for comment on Bovino’s current role.
Homan held talks with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and set a less confrontational tone. In February, Homan announced he would send thousands of agents home but said immigration enforcement would continue.
(Reporting by Brad Brooks in Colorado; Editing by Donna Bryson and Matthew Lewis)
