Woodbury realtor says ICE held him 9 hours after he filmed agents across Twin Cities
A Woodbury realtor says he followed and filmed ICE agents in public — including a grocery‑store parking lot and his cul‑de‑sac — and was detained by ICE for more than nine hours, alleging agents pulled him from his car, put him in a headlock, threw him to the ground and left him with a black eye and facial abrasions though he was never formally arrested or charged. ICE declined to explain the legal basis for the detention, First Amendment experts say recording law enforcement in public is protected, and the account comes amid DHS’s Operation Metro Surge — a deployment of roughly 2,000 ICE officers (with plans for 1,000 more) that has sparked lawsuits, protests and business community concerns in the Twin Cities.
📌 Key Facts
- A Woodbury resident, identified by name and described in reporting as a realtor, says ICE agents detained him for more than nine hours after he followed and recorded them in public, including at a grocery store parking lot and in his cul‑de‑sac.
- He alleges agents pulled him from his car in a headlock, threw him to the ground and transported him to a detention facility; he says he was left with a black eye and facial abrasions and was never formally arrested or charged.
- ICE declined to answer reporter questions about the legal basis for the detention or whether following and filming agents is a crime; First Amendment experts quoted in reporting say recording law enforcement in public is protected speech.
- Reporting places the incident in the broader legal context: a federal judge recently struck down a Trump‑era DHS rule that labeled some recording as 'unlawful civil unrest,' while DOJ lawyers in a separate Minnesota case have argued such conduct is illegal and a ruling in that case is pending.
- The accounts frame the detention as part of Operation Metro Surge — DHS has sent roughly 2,000 ICE officers to the Twin Cities with plans for 1,000 more — tying the encounter directly to the scale of the surge.
- News outlets link this and other on‑camera incidents (including the Renee Good killing and a Border Patrol knee‑strike video) to growing lawsuits, protests and calls for independent oversight of ICE and Border Patrol in the Twin Cities.
- Local business coverage says the surge and related enforcement activity (including patrols at MSP and reported detentions of Target workers) are rattling the business community, prompting spikes in TurnSignl sign‑ups and warnings from chambers about economic impacts.
📊 Relevant Data
Somalis began resettling in Minnesota in large numbers in the 1990s as refugees fleeing civil war, facilitated by strong refugee programs, volunteer organizations, affordable housing, and job opportunities.
How Minnesota became a hub for Somali immigrants in the U.S. — NPR
Somali immigrants in Minnesota experience high poverty rates, with 78% of Somali immigrant households receiving some form of welfare, compared to lower rates among native households.
Somali Immigrants in Minnesota — Center for Immigration Studies
In Minnesota's Feeding Our Future fraud case, 89% of charged defendants are Somali Americans, while Somalis constitute about 2% of the state's population.
Fact Check Team: Exploring the billions of alleged fraud in Minnesota — KOMO News
Somali Minnesotans generate between $1 billion and $1.4 billion in total income annually and pay an estimated $67 million in state and local taxes.
Latest Data on Somali Minnesotans 2024 — Empowering Strategies
Woodbury, Minnesota's population grew from 75,102 in 2020 to an estimated 80,596 in 2025, with racial diversity increasing to 28.8% BIPOC in 2020.
Community Profile — City of Woodbury
From January 21, 2025, to January 7, 2026, ICE experienced a 1,300% increase in assaults against officers and a 3,200% increase in vehicular attacks.
Radical Rhetoric by Sanctuary Politicians Leads to an Unprecedented 1,300% Increase in Assaults Against ICE Officers — Department of Homeland Security
At least 130 Americans have been arrested for filming ICE agents, despite courts ruling that recording law enforcement in public is protected under the First Amendment.
Filming ICE agents is a First Amendment right. So why might it land you in jail? — Straight Arrow News
A federal judge ruled that DHS has adopted an unlawful policy suppressing First Amendment rights by treating recording of agents as 'impeding' operations.
ICE says it’s illegal to record agents, but is DHS policy actually unlawful? — FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul
📰 Source Timeline (3)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- The Business Journal identifies the man as a Woodbury realtor, adding his professional role and clarifying that he was following and recording agents as part of his own concern about the surge.
- It situates his account explicitly within DHS’s decision to send 2,000 ICE officers into the Twin Cities with plans for 1,000 more, tying his detention directly to the scale of Operation Metro Surge.
- The piece frames his story as part of a pattern already rattling the business community, cross‑linking to reports of ICE patrols at MSP, Target worker detentions, TurnSignl sign‑up spikes, and chambers warning the surge is hammering the Minneapolis economy.
- The article identifies the Woodbury resident by name and details that ICE agents detained him for more than nine hours after he followed and recorded them in public, including at a grocery store parking lot and in his cul‑de‑sac.
- He alleges agents pulled him from his car in a headlock, threw him to the ground, and transported him to a detention facility, leaving him with a black eye and facial abrasions even though he was never formally arrested or charged.
- ICE refused to answer questions from the reporter about the legal basis for the detention or whether mere filming and following agents constitutes a crime, while First Amendment experts quoted in the story say recording law enforcement in public is protected speech.
- The piece notes this happened as a federal judge recently struck down a Trump‑era DHS rule labeling recording as 'unlawful civil unrest,' and as DOJ lawyers in a separate Minnesota case argued that such conduct is illegal, with a ruling pending.
- The story situates the detention as part of Operation Metro Surge, alongside other on‑camera incidents (the Renee Good killing and Border Patrol knee‑strike video) that are fueling lawsuits, protests and demands for independent oversight of ICE and Border Patrol in the Twin Cities.