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Challenging Corruption
New Letter Urges Governor, Attorney General, County Attorneys, Mayors and Chiefs of Police to Launch Criminal Investigations into Federal Agents for Unlawful Assaults, Detentions, and Political Retaliation Against Minnesota Residents
(MINNEAPOLIS, MN 12/18/25) – The Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN) today joined Free Speech For People, a national nonpartisan legal advocacy organization, in submitting a request urging Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, Attorney General Keith Ellison and other officials to open criminal investigations into the unlawful actions of federal agents operating in the Twin Cities and throughout the state, including racially profiling and kidnapping U.S. citizens.
Since the Trump administration’s racist statements targeting Somali Americans in early December 2025, federal agents have carried out a series of unlawful detentions, violent assaults, and kidnappings, primarily targeting and racially profiling the Somali immigrant community and other communities of color across Minnesota, as part of the administration’s immigration operations.
Free Speech For People and CAIR-Minnesota’s letter alleges that these acts were part of a coordinated criminal conspiracy directed by President Donald Trump and senior administration officials, intended not to enforce federal law but to punish and terrorize immigrants, Somali Americans—including those born in this country—and political opponents.
“Federal agents in Minnesota have been documented targeting communities based on nothing more than the color of their skin and their perceived religion,” said Courtney Hostetler, Legal Director for Free Speech For People. “Those are not valid bases for immigration enforcement, let alone unlawful assaults and kidnappings.”
“The overwhelming majority of Somali Americans in Minnesota are U.S. citizens, and even by the federal government’s own estimates, less than a fraction of one percent of our community could possibly be subject to immigration enforcement,” said Jaylani Hussein, Executive Director of CAIR-Minnesota. “What we are witnessing instead is the harassment and intimidation of U.S. citizens based on race, language, and perceived religion—through unlawful detentions, assaults, and coercive tactics that have nothing to do with public safety. Local police departments have witnessed federal agents engage in shameful and dangerous conduct, including escalating tensions and provoking confrontations with observers and legal witnesses, creating volatile street-level situations. Taken together, these actions reflect a coordinated pattern of intimidation rather than legitimate law enforcement, and they demand immediate criminal investigation and accountability from state and local authorities.”
While the administration’s immigration enforcement efforts were purportedly aimed at the “worst of the worst,” publicly available evidence indicates many residents being detained are citizens or have legal status.
Federal agents have engaged in a series of violent and unlawful actions, including:
  • Detaining individuals without cause;
  • Targeting and harassing individuals because of their perceived race and/or religion.
  • Using excessive force against residents and citizens in the course of immigration arrests;
  • Pointing firearms at bystanders without case.
The letter outlines numerous potential violations of Minnesota criminal law, including assault, unlawful use of a weapon, kidnapping, mistreatment of persons confined, burglary, trespass, unlawful assembly, rioting, coercion, threats of violence, public nuisance, as well as potential hate crimes and civil rights violations. It further contends that Supremacy Clause immunity does not protect federal agents who act outside lawful authority or engage in conduct they know to be unlawful.
“Federal agents and officials who unreasonably and unnecessarily violate state criminal law are not immune from state prosecution,” said Ben Clements, Chairman and Senior Legal Advisor at Free Speech For People. “That includes the officials who ordered them to terrorize the Somali American community and the President himself.”
Free Speech For People emphasizes that while federal prosecutors have been compromised by the administration’s own misconduct, state and local authorities retain independent jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute crimes committed within their borders.
“The President has made it clear that this operation is about punishing communities for including Somali Americans or supporting Somali Americans,” said Ben Horton, Counsel at Free Speech For People. “Under these circumstances, the federal government is not going to discipline agents who engage in racist, unlawful behavior. It is up to Minnesota officials to protect their residents.”
CAIR-MN is the state’s leading Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization. Its mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.