Oglala Sioux Tribe Says ICE Illegally Detaining Four Tribal Citizens From Minneapolis Raids
The Oglala Sioux Tribe, one of the largest Indigenous nations in the U.S., has formally accused Immigration and Customs Enforcement of illegally holding four Oglala citizens swept up in recent Minneapolis ICE raids and says it was told federal officials would share information on them only if the tribe signed a cooperation agreement with ICE. In a Jan. 13 memo to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, tribal president Frank Star Comes Out says the four men, described as homeless and living under a bridge near the Little Earth housing complex, are U.S. citizens and 'categorically outside immigration jurisdiction,' and that placing them in immigration detention after verifying their citizenship would be unlawful. The tribe refused to enter an agreement it says would violate its treaties and give ICE easier access to tribal homelands, calling the detentions 'a treaty violation' and warning that 'sovereignty is not conditional,' while noting the detainees are reportedly held at Fort Snelling — a historic Dakota incarceration site tied to the 1862 mass execution of 38+2 Dakota men. ICE and DHS did not respond to Axios’ questions, and the tribe is threatening aggressive legal action, potentially joined by other Native nations, as part of the broader backlash to Trump‑era immigration crackdowns and Minneapolis raids already under civil‑rights and oversight scrutiny.
📌 Key Facts
- Oglala Sioux Tribe President Frank Star Comes Out sent a Jan. 13 memo to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum accusing ICE of illegally detaining four Oglala citizens picked up in Minneapolis.
- The tribe says the four men are U.S. citizens who were homeless near the Little Earth housing complex and asserts that 'tribal citizens are not aliens' and are 'categorically outside immigration jurisdiction.'
- According to the memo, federal officials told the tribe they would only release information about the detainees if the tribe signed an agreement with ICE, which the tribe refused as inconsistent with its treaties.
- The tribe says the men are reportedly held at Fort Snelling, a site historically associated with the Dakota Wars and the largest mass execution in U.S. history, and has pledged 'aggressive legal action' while other tribes may join.
- The dispute follows the tribe’s move last week to ban then–South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem from the Pine Ridge Reservation over her border and 'cartel presence' comments, deepening tensions between tribal governments and federal immigration authorities.
📊 Relevant Data
Native Americans make up about 2% of Minnesota's population but accounted for 20% of the state's homeless population in 2023, making them 30 times more likely than White Minnesotans to experience homelessness.
Minnesota Native groups expand efforts to protect unhoused women — Sahan Journal
More than 170 U.S. citizens have been held by immigration agents as of October 2025, with many instances involving racial minorities who were detained despite proof of citizenship.
Native Americans born in the U.S. are U.S. citizens under the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924, and ICE cannot detain or deport them for immigration violations.
Native Americans and Immigration Enforcement — Know Your Rights — Native American Rights Fund
There have been reports of at least 15 Indigenous individuals in Arizona and New Mexico being stopped, questioned, or detained by ICE based on their appearance, amid rising incidents of racial profiling of Native Americans by immigration agents.
The Bitter Irony: ICE Targets Native American Indians Using Misguided Racial Profiling — Indigenous Network
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