Court affidavits show 4,000 federal agents cycled through Minnesota; about 400 ICE/HSI to remain after Metro Surge
Court affidavits filed at U.S. District Judge Eric Tostrud’s request say more than 4,000 federal agents — including roughly 3,000 ICE personnel (with about 270 ERO officers and 700 HSI agents detailed to the St. Paul field office) and additional CBP officers — cycled through Operation Metro Surge, with CBP beginning demobilization around Feb. 4 by moving about 680 personnel and leaving roughly 67 CBP staff to be reassigned. ICE’s filings say staffing will stabilize at about 107 ERO officers and 300 HSI agents in Minnesota, and while officials including White House border official Tom Homan have publicly declared the Metro Surge over, enforcement data and maps show post‑announcement arrests and operations remained elevated above pre‑surge baselines; the drawdown coincided with a sharp drop in immigration habeas filings and the lifting of a prior contempt order after ICE complied.
📌 Key Facts
- Federal authorities publicly announced that Operation Metro Surge — framed as an "immigration crackdown" in Minnesota — has ended; that on‑the‑record declaration can be used to challenge any effort to continue similar tactics under a different name.
- Court affidavits filed in the ACLU civil‑rights lawsuit show more than 4,000 federal agents (ICE and CBP) were assigned to Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota at various times.
- CBP began demobilizing around Feb. 4, first moving about 680 officers and agents out and setting a final drawdown that leaves roughly 67 CBP personnel to be reassigned out of Minnesota this week.
- ICE affidavits state the surge at one point placed roughly 3,000 ICE personnel in Minnesota — including about 270 ERO officers and roughly 700 HSI agents detailed to the St. Paul field office — and that staffing will settle at approximately 107 ERO officers and about 300 HSI agents.
- U.S. District Judge Eric Tostrud ordered the disclosure of drawdown details as part of an ACLU lawsuit alleging racial profiling and unlawful, warrantless arrests during Metro Surge; he sought the information before ruling on limits to future enforcement.
- Post‑announcement enforcement metrics and maps show continued arrests and traffic/home operations in the Twin Cities after officials said the surge had concluded, and federal records/on‑the‑ground data indicate hundreds of ICE and CBP/Border Patrol personnel remained at levels above the pre‑surge baseline.
- The sharp drop in immigration habeas filings last week coincided with the drawdown, and a prior contempt order over the government's failure to promptly free a detainee was lifted after ICE belatedly complied.
📊 Relevant Data
Less than 14% of the nearly 400,000 immigrants arrested by ICE from January 21, 2025, to January 31, 2026, had charges or convictions for violent criminal offenses.
Nearly 40% of ICE arrests during Trump's first year back in office involved individuals with no criminal record, detained for civil immigration offenses.
The poverty rate for children in Somali immigrant homes in Minnesota is 52.3%, compared to 7.6% for children in native-headed homes.
Somali Immigrants in Minnesota — Center for Immigration Studies
Somali refugee resettlement in Minnesota has been facilitated by faith-based nongovernmental organizations, including Protestant, Catholic, evangelical Christian, and Jewish groups, that contract with the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement.
After Trump called Somalis 'garbage,' Minnesota faith groups answer with tea and coffee — Religion News Service
From 2019 to 2023, an estimated 8% of people with Somali ancestry in Minnesota received certain forms of public assistance income, with a possible range of 6.3% to 10.1%.
Fact-checking Trump’s verbal attack on Somalis — Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
📰 Source Timeline (4)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- Sworn affidavits from CBP lead field coordinator Marty Raybon Sr. and ICE ERO St. Paul Field Office Director Sam Olson confirm that more than 4,000 federal agents (ICE and CBP) were assigned to Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota at various times.
- The affidavits say CBP began demobilizing around Feb. 4, moving about 680 officers and agents out first and setting a final drawdown that leaves only 67 or so CBP personnel to be reassigned out of Minnesota this week.
- For ICE, Olson states the surge at one point put roughly 3,000 ICE personnel in Minnesota (about 270 ERO officers and 700 Homeland Security Investigations agents detailed to the St. Paul field office), and that by the end of this week staffing will settle at approximately 107 ERO officers and about 300 HSI agents based here.
- The filings were ordered by U.S. District Judge Eric Tostrud as part of an ACLU civil‑rights lawsuit alleging racial profiling and unlawful, warrantless arrests during Metro Surge; he wants the drawdown details before ruling on limits to future enforcement.
- FOX 9 notes that the sharp drop in immigration habeas filings last week coincides with this drawdown, and that a prior contempt order related to the government’s failure to promptly free a detainee was lifted after ICE belatedly complied.
- Clarifies that while the named 'Metro Surge' has been declared over, federal records and on‑the‑ground data show hundreds of ICE and Border Patrol agents still operating in Minnesota at levels above the pre‑surge baseline.
- Provides post‑announcement enforcement metrics and maps showing continued arrests and traffic/home operations in the metro after officials said the surge had concluded.
- Contrasts official 'mission accomplished' statements with arrest/impact data to show that the end of the branding did not mean an immediate end to elevated enforcement activity.
- Confirms that federal authorities at large — not just border czar Tom Homan — are now publicly declaring Operation Metro Surge concluded in Minnesota.
- Frames the end specifically as the termination of the "immigration crackdown" in Minnesota, reinforcing that the surge is no longer active under that banner.
- Provides another on‑the‑record statement that the surge has ended, which can be used against any future attempts to quietly continue Metro‑Surge‑style tactics under a different name.