Operation Metro Surge: DHS Publicizes Arrests of Convicted Sex Offenders as Minnesota Democrats Denounce Raids
DHS and Border Patrol publicized a Minneapolis‑area immigration sweep, releasing a curated list of six people they said were arrested “just yesterday” with prior convictions ranging from sex crimes involving minors to domestic violence and drug offenses and calling the operation the removal of the “worst of the worst.” Minnesota Democrats and local leaders condemned the raids as politically and socially damaging—citing fear in the Hmong community, parents telling children to stay home, sharp revenue losses for Hmong Village, and warnings that the enforcement push over Minnesota’s non‑cooperation with ICE detainers is politically toxic.
📌 Key Facts
- DHS provided Fox News a curated list of six individuals arrested “just yesterday” in the Minneapolis-area sweep; those individuals have prior convictions ranging from sex crimes involving minors to domestic violence and drug trafficking.
- Border Patrol chief Greg Bovino held a news conference defending the Minneapolis-area operations and described the arrests as taking the “worst of the worst” off the streets.
- DHS official McLaughlin explicitly linked the arrests to Minnesota’s non-cooperation with ICE detainers, arguing that non-cooperation endangers the public; that talking point has been echoed by the White House and GOP surrogates online.
- Minnesota Democrats view Operation Metro Surge as politically toxic in part because of concrete local economic fallout — Hmong Village reported multi‑day emptiness and 60–70% revenue losses.
- Members of St. Paul’s Hmong community report widespread fear and daily‑life disruption: parents say they tell children to lock doors and not leave the house while parents are at work.
- St. Paul’s mayor publicly highlighted the community’s fear, saying she carried her passport and that naturalized‑citizen relatives are “more afraid now than they were fighting communism in Laos,” underscoring civil‑rights stakes beyond abstract party messaging.
📰 Source Timeline (3)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
January 23, 2026
7:04 PM
Convicted pedophiles, sex predators arrested in Minnesota immigration sweep within the last 24 hours
New information:
- Border Patrol chief Greg Bovino held a news conference specifically to defend Minneapolis‑area operations and brand recent arrests as taking 'worst of the worst' off the streets.
- DHS gives Fox a curated list of six named individuals arrested 'just yesterday' with prior convictions ranging from sex crimes involving minors to domestic violence and drug trafficking.
- McLaughlin explicitly links these arrests to her broader claim that Minnesota’s non‑cooperation with ICE detainers is endangering the public, a talking point now being echoed by the White House and GOP surrogates online.
January 22, 2026
2:12 AM
St. Paul mayor says city's Hmong community "afraid to leave their homes" due to ICE
New information:
- Provides concrete local economic fallout — multi‑day emptiness and 60–70% revenue losses at Hmong Village — that helps explain why Minnesota Democrats see Operation Metro Surge as politically toxic.
- Shows a newly installed big‑city mayor personally carrying her passport and saying naturalized‑citizen relatives are 'more afraid now than they were fighting communism in Laos,' sharpening the civil‑rights stakes beyond abstract party messaging.
- Documents parents’ reports that they tell children to lock doors behind them and not leave the house while they are at work, indicating daily‑life disruption beyond protest events and high‑profile arrests.